


A Rose By Any Other Name

by HazelGatoya



Category: Persona 4, Persona 5
Genre: Angst, As the story goes on of course, But it will become clearer once Akechi actually starts telling his story, Everyone gets in on it eventually, F/M, Gen, Illness, Loki is extremely vocal, Multiple Personalities, Naoto and Kanji take care of a very sad boi, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Persona 4 Spoilers, Persona 5 Spoilers, Texting, This is kind of disconnected in the beginning, While not ignoring the sheer amount of DEATH on his hands, Wiretaps, injuries
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-24
Updated: 2020-03-30
Packaged: 2020-05-19 04:12:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 52,932
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19349263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HazelGatoya/pseuds/HazelGatoya
Summary: Undergoing edits. Next chapter update is currently undetermined.Akechi survived the engine room, but the way he did so kept him trapped in the Metaverse. He's lucky that someone's been looking for him, and has a vested interest in his survival. Despite his crimes, no one deserves to simply be forgotten as he has been, nor to die alone.Basically Naoto Shirogane and Kanji Tatsumi hunt down Goro Akechi so that he can actually have a fair run of things for once in his life.





	1. Found

**Author's Note:**

> Song for this chapter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mDcdt-3hJ_Q
> 
> Me: I have too much to do
> 
> Akechi: But you started all of these headcanons before you joined the archive and I'm a prominent figure in your head again.
> 
> Me: Oh boy here we go.
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

        Akechi continued to stagger forward, looking around at the scenery in what could be awe if he weren't so blasted tired. It was a far cry from the dull cities and areas of dark, swirling color that he'd gotten used to. The air smelled... well, like a park in his scattered memories. Fresh, clean, only without all of the surrounding noise and smell of the city. There was nothing but nature all around him- nature and some fog. Loki was quiet for once, likely as tired as Akechi himself was, tired and shocked.

        "To the tree," Akechi mumbled to himself. "Just... need to make it to the tree." It was a focal point here, and seemed like a good place to stop. There was no protest, no noise, and he managed to walk to the tree, lean against it and sink to the ground, exhaustion settling deep into his bones and staying there. He didn't find himself caring much. He could happily stay in this soft grass forever. "It's beautiful," he murmured. "Did I find a meadow after exiting the Metaverse, or did people actually envision such clear scenery?"

         _Well, we're not in Shibuya and still in the Metaverse,_ Loki responded.  _...Maybe people aren't so bad anymore._

        "Mm, yes, we knew that." His eyelids were growing heavy. "Fog is the only thing ruining the view..."

         _Are you just going to fall asleep here?_

        He blinked, shifting, and then flopped onto his side that didn't have a wounded shoulder, curling slightly. "I can't move anymore, so just... let me rest... I'm so tired..."

         _You realize that you probably won't be able to move again?_

        Robin Hood's voice was quiet. "There are worse places to stay for eternity," Akechi sighed. "This isn't a bad last view."

        They didn't speak, but he could feel their soft agreement before their presence faded. Akechi's vision grew blurry, and he let his eyes close, falling down into what was probably his final sleep.

....

..........

....................

        "Well, what do you know?"

        Akechi stirred at the unfamiliar, reedy voice, His limbs still felt heavy, but he could open his eyes, so he did. He found himself looking up into the blue gaze of a strangely costumed person... or... something else. "Like Mona?" he mumbled. 

        "Yes, beary smart of you, Goro Akechi." The red, white and blue bear creature held out a paw. "You can't stay here."

        Akechi lifted his head, staring blearily at the large paw for a moment. "You know my name," he mumbled, scuffing at his eyes with a clumsy hand. "Is this your home? I'm sorry for intruding, but-"

        "Oh no, no trouble," the creature interrupted. "This  _is_ my home, but we've been looking for you for a beary long time. I'm Teddie, by the way."

        "Teddie." His mumble had evolved into a harsh croak. "I...I don't want to leave." He wanted to go back to sleep, his head was pounding, his throat felt raw, and his stomach felt like it was caving in on itself. Not to mention the ache in his shoulder that really should be bleeding after he'd pulled that bullet out, as well as the rest of his wounds he'd gotten from the Phantom Thieves. 

        "You have to," Teddie insisted. "This place isn't good for humans. If you stay, you'll just feel worse and eventually fade."

        "I won't if I come with you?" He was stuck in the Metaverse, he'd thought. There was nowhere he could go or anything he could do to keep from fading. But the bear was nodding, and Loki and Robin Hood were back, their curiosity pushing back the ache. In agreement again. He stared at the paw and the pleading look in Teddie's big blue eyes for a moment longer, then placed his hand on the paw, allowing himself to get pulled to his feet.

        He stumbled immediately, falling forward and catching himself on Teddie's head. "Careful, careful. Oh dear, we need to get you out of here quick..." The bear moved, holding him around the waist with one large paw. "Hold onto my ear."

        "S-sorry." He curled a hand around Teddie's furry blue ear, and they began walking, the world seeming to fray at the edges with every unsteady step. "How... how are we getting out?"

        "Through the flatscreen TV in Junes, of course."

         _Hey, uh, Earth to Central?_  Loki interrupted while Akechi tried to wrap his head around that concept and Teddie hurried them along.  _Bear's not lying, but this is going to hurt. Like, a LOT. Be prepared._

        "You're less..." What was the word he was looking for?

         _Eloquent,_ Robin Hood supplied, voice somewhat strained.  _Eloquent than usual. Not our fault- we're just as tired as you are._

_Yeah, we're all going to be out of commission as soon as we cross the barrier. Apologies in advance?_

_Stop forcing him to talk to himself,_ Robin Hood snapped.

        "Alright, we're here," Teddie was saying. "Tighten your grip on my ear, okay?"

        Akechi did so automatically, blinking groggily. How long had they been walking? The tree was in the distance now. "They said it's going to hurt."

        "Oh good, you're hearing me again." Teddie heaved a small sigh. "Well... you're going to die if you stay."

        "Mmhm. I know, I'm following."

        "Right, right..." The bear swallowed. "Here goes nothing-!"

        They stepped forward, and the world went white, the dull pain echoing throughout Akechi's body exploding into sharp agony. He bit back the scream that threatened to escape, but he couldn't help himself from collapsing to the cold stone floor and trembling there. Everything dark-cold... grounded... smelled like blood. His shoulder- oh glory... they were quiet, and his shoulder actually felt like it had been shot.

        He was back.

        He was out of the Metaverse and Loki had been right- this  _seriously_ hurt.

        "Kanji-" Teddie's panicked voice was the last thing he heard before all of his senses were swallowed by sudden, sticky darkness. "Yes I know what time it is- k-kind of, but that doesn't matter cause I found him and he's in beary bad shape and you need to get to Junes  _right now!_ "


	2. Ignore the Burns from the Grenade Launcher

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akechi is stabilized and people are alerted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song for this chapter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fpk_HhEdDO4
> 
> Honestly I don't think this chapter warrant a Graphic Depictions of Violence tag? But there's still a lot of blood and description of trauma so brace yourselves. Hope you enjoy!

        Teddie had not been exaggerating about Akechi's condition. Kanji was immensely, _intensely_ aware of that fact as soon as he walked in the door and immediately set to work with the medical kit that Teddie had insisted he bring, practically pushing the bear and his attempts to stop the bleeding aside in his haste. 

        "Shit, he already ripped the bullet out?" Kanji muttered, he knew a gunshot wound when he saw one, and the source of most of the blood was the one in his shoulder. Right in the joint, where it'd be hard pressed to heal properly since people constantly moved their shoulders.

        Teddie wrung his bloodied hands. "A-apparently. Hasn't been a bullet there since I found him anyways. You... you guys never got  _this_ badly hurt while in the- the-"

        "Yeah well, we never fought  _each other_ either. Or got stuck in the Metaverse for nearly three months. It was always just a coupla days." They'd taken his jacket and shirt off. Kanji considered removing his pants too, but that might have to wait until they got to Naoto's. There wasn't blood on his pants, so the worst that he had to have were bruises.

        Akechi seemed to be an experienced scrapper at least, not that Kanji was too surprised. All of the worst wounds were on his arms and on the sides of his ribcage- his burning ribcage, the kid had a fever that rivaled even the one Yu had gotten that one time- but all of them were bleeding at once and it made things... complicated. His upper body was already looking like a mummy because Kanji had to work fast. He couldn't pay too much attention to what might be mild burns on his collarbone, nor the bruising on his stomach that looked like brass knuckles, nor the red whip mark coiled around his upper arm. Not when his breathing was so shallow, his body was so hot, and he was trying to lose all his lifeblood. 

        Knife wounds scored particularly deep. There was a shallow slash across his chest that looked like it had been done with a bigger blade, but it was just that, shallow. And quickly covered by bandages. Kanji carefully looked the boy over. The bandages were already slightly damp with blood and sweat, but he wasn't dripping onto the floor now, so he carefully took his still unconscious form into his hands. "So glad I actually drove Nao's van," he muttered, heading towards the door. "Tell Yosuke to check the security feed, could you clean the-"

        "Yes, I'll get the blood off of the floor. Let me know how he's doing?" 

        As usual, whenever Teddie was concerned, Kanji could practically taste the emotion on his own tongue. The once bear's huge blue eyes stared up at the two of them even as Teddie remained kneeling on the floor, Akechi's jacket and shirt crumpled in his hands. There was a lot of blood on the tiles of Junes and on their hands. "I will," Kanji promised, turning around. "Don't worry too much."

        Hopefully Teddie would put it out of his head like he managed to do with some things. Kanji had to focus on getting Akechi out of the store, carefully lay him in the back of the van and drive as quickly and as carefully as he could to Naoto's. 

        Thank god he had been spending the night. Teddie's message had reached both of them at once and they would take their good fortune where they could. Kanji got the boy out of the car and moved towards the gate, and Akechi stirred in his arms, face screwing up in pain.

        Kanji swore again, softly.

-

        Naoto was far more on top of things than he was, which was no surprise. She had the futon laid out, the room all prepared, and she helped Kanji get Akechi lying down, checking for more wounds. Akechi was beginning to give soft, feeble sobs, eyes still closed. He was likely completely delirious, but he seemed to be awake now. Awake enough to feel the pain and mention it as best he could in his condition, anyways. "Consciousness is a good sign," Naoto remarked briskly as she placed a cloth on Akechi's forehead, but he could see the strain in her blue eyes and the way her hands shook just slightly. "Him being able to feel the pain is also a good sign. I'm going to get some water, he's likely horribly dehydrated."

        "Got it." Kanji nodded, and she got up, striding out of the room. Akechi shuddered under the blankets, giving a soft moan, breathing still hitched into sobs. Kanji pressed his lips together. "It's better than winding up dangling from a telephone pole," he murmured. "You're not going to die, Akechi. That's a promise."

        Akechi didn't acknowledge the words, continuing to cry weakly until Naoto came back with the water. Kanji took the cloth from his forehead as Naoto carefully lifted him into a sitting position and pressed the cup to his lips. "Here, water," she told him, and the soft sobs paused for a moment. Akechi sniffled, and then opened his mouth slightly, and Naoto tilted the cup so that he could gulp down the water slowly and carefully. "There we go," she soothed softly. "That's better, isn't it?"

        Akechi's eyes fluttered open at these words, glazed over, but the fog wasn't enough to mask the obvious confusion in them and on his face as he stared up at Naoto. "I..." he mumbled, voice wobbling and wavering enough that Kanji had to strain to hear. "I don't... who?"

        "There you are." Naoto moved to put him down, and he gave a strangled cry of protest, managing to reach up to her with his arm that didn't have an injured shoulder, hand shaking. Her eyes widened, and she held him a bit closer. "Shh, shh. I was just going to get you more water-"

        "No- Not alone, not..." he trailed into a whimper, burying his face in her shoulder. 

        "He knows you're there, Nao," Kanji told her as she began gently and carefully rubbing circles on Akechi's back. "He hasn't acknowledged me at all."

        "Are you saying that you should get the water?" Naoto considered the offer, then nodded. "Alright. I don't want to upset him."

        "More than he already is, you mean?" Kanji got up, moving out to let Naoto continue to comfort the ill boy, came back with a glass of water. Naoto helped Akechi drink it once again, and lowered him back down onto the futon when his body began going limp again.

        "This is not how I expected this to go," Naoto muttered, pulling up the blanket over him and wiping the tears and sweat from his face. Akechi didn't even stir, likely completely exhausted just waking up briefly. "I knew he wasn't dead due to the lack of reports about telephone poles, but he's been carting these injuries around for three months, in the Metaverse. That shouldn't be possible."

        "We've seen weirder," Kanji reminded her.

        "I know. But still." Naoto sighed. "I can't interrogate him like this. I... suppose we'll have to wait and see if he recovers." She moved some hair out of Akechi's face. "I have several questions."

        "I know you do." Kanji stared down at him. "He don't seem too dangerous. I could believe it when he was on television. There was a shark behind his smile." Naoto nodded thoughtfully. "It's not just the fever either- I don't know. We don't know enough."

        "That's why I was looking." Naoto rubbed her face. "We'll take turns watching him tonight, maybe get some nutrients in him if he wakes up again. This is going to be slow, but... he's not succumbing to this."

        "Not on our watch," Kanji agreed, then blinked when his phone buzzed. Naoto gave him a small nod out of habit, and he took it out.

 **Junes_Idgit:**  Dude.

 **Junes_Idgit:**  DUDE.

 **Junes_Idgit:**  Dude, so what the actual hell did you take out of my store? Is he okay?

 **Junes_Idgit:**  I've got a phone here that probably belongs to him.

 **Junes_Idgit:**  Just frick that's a lot of blood, call me when you have time

        "I uh... think we've got some explaining to do to Yosuke."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Persona 4 cast: No hospitals, we treat our own like men. 
> 
> I know Yu has a nurse friend but after the whole Nanako business I don't see them being too comfortable with leaving someone who has experience with the Metaverse in a hospital. Not to mention it'd be horribly complicated in Akechi's case.
> 
> Next chapter's going to be so long because what are consistent chapter sizes? XD


	3. Fog Sickness Immunizations? Anyone?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lots of texting and discussion of what one does with a forgotten assassin. Akechi continues to be mostly unconscious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song for this chapter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZUi9xKY8X8
> 
> I hate writing large groups so much hhhhhhh. But hopefully I did the Investigation Team justice.

        The Investigation Team group chat  _exploded_  the next morning- honestly, Naoto was surprised that Yosuke had the decency to wait until an hour after the sun rose to mention the fact that  _hey, they found the assassin they've been looking for._  Yu and Rise were apparently dropping everything and getting back to Inaba as quickly as possible and they were holding an impromptu group meeting at her home. There wasn't anywhere else that they could have it since leaving Akechi alone in his current condition was a bad idea. 

**Phoenix:** Naoto and Kanji have been switching on and off all day

**Phoenix:** Whoever's available, how is he?

**Me:**  I'm available. His condition is too complicated to send over text. He's still asleep right now.

        Complicated was one way to put it anyways. Kanji had actually worked a bit more with the teenager's wounds this morning while Naoto called into work and stated that she needed today off- which they hadn't argued with, she very seldom used her vacation days. Kanji had given her the rundown before leaving to help his mother for a bit and hopefully get some sleep since both boys had been completely exhausted at that point. There were definitely a couple of second-degree burns on Akechi's chest, along with several bruises that were extremely ugly colors now that they'd had some time to sit. They'd stitched the worst of the knife wounds- Naoto needed to apologize to Kanji for making him do that later- and the rest would close on their own eventually. The worst of it all was honestly the wound in his shoulder, while the rest would scar they were at least able to heal easily.

**StormUponJunes:** In other words, not good but not dying

**Me:**  That works.

**Phoenix:** Poor thing. 

**JackofallTrades:**  We're going to be there by this evening

**JackofallTrades:**  Give or take three hours

**BEAR:** Excited to see you again Sensei!

**StormUponJunes:** Moron, think of the situation

**StormUponJunes:**  Wait- is Rise driving?

**JackofallTrades:** She insisted

**JackofallTrades:**  Back on topic-

**JackofallTrades:**  It's kinda weird how all this worked out for the kid.

**StormUponJunes:** What do you mean, dude?

**Dragon:** Can we wait?

**Dragon:**  I want this explanation too

**Dragon:**  But I gotta focus

**Phoenix:** Chie has a point

        Naoto almost dropped her phone when her leg got nudged, and she looked down to see Akechi moving slightly, his face scrunching up into a grimace. 

**Me:** He's stirring, we'll talk later

**BEAR:** Bye Naoto!

        Naoto set her phone aside as the teenager gave a low moan. Three hours. Everyone would likely be off work and Chie would be done with classes by then anyways. Akechi's red eyes flickered open, and he turned his head towards her, wincing. "Nnh."

        "Do you need something?" she asked him quietly, brushing his hair out of his eyes. He blinked, glancing towards the thermos of warm broth. Her lips quirked up despite herself at his apparent unwillingness to speak. His throat was likely bothering him about as much as most of his wounds. "I'll help you sit up, then." 

        She unscrewed the thermos and got the broth and boiled vegetables into a cup while he watched, his eyes fluttering slightly like he was thinking about falling asleep again. The fog from this morning still hadn't faded from his gaze, and Naoto wasn't expecting it to any time soon. It seemed to be a natural numbing, not that she could really call anything from the Metaverse _natural_. 

        She gently helped him sit up since his eyes hadn't closed again, and he whimpered, eyes widening. "Hush. I know it hurts," she told him, tone the firm but gentle one she used when talking to distraught witnesses. "I'll set you back down once you've eaten."

        He didn't choke on the broth this time, and Naoto was pleased to see that he actually managed to sit up a bit more as he carefully gulped it down, chewing the small bits when he had to easily. He drained the entire cup, licking his lips a bit when she set the cup down and got the water bottle for him so that he could drink that as well. She gently set him down after that. "Better?"

        "Mmhm," he mumbled, closing his eyes again. His breathing evened out almost immediately. Naoto brushed his hair out of his eyes again, wondering- not for the first time since Kanji had brought him here- how he could stand to have this haircut and how he managed to keep it out of his face every time she'd seen him on television. She then grabbed her laptop and settled in to wait for the next three hours.

-

        "Man," Chie remarked, hands on her hips as she scanned the living room. "Been awhile since it's just been the eight of us, hasn't it?"

        "You said it," Yosuke huffed shaking his head as he handed Akechi's washed and folded jacket and shirt to Kanji, a revolver and smartphone on top of the pile. "Not that I have a problem with Naoki, Jusuke, and Nanako-chan, but I've missed just having the opportunity to have us all together to talk about TV world stuff."

        "We should have done it before someone got shot," Yukiko muttered.

        "He's a tad bit more than  _just_ shot, but yeah," Kanji replied, setting the items down on the table in front of Naoto before going back to pacing, and she grimaced as she picked up the revolver. Black, and somewhat stocky if still somewhat elegant. 

        "But he's alive." Rise's voice was barely above a whisper. She'd all but collapsed onto the couch as soon as she and Yu had walked in the door, her mascara already smeared from crying, but she gave them all a wavering smile, still clutching Yu's hand. "That's better than the reason we all gathered together and formed the team, right?"

        Yukiko managed a small smile of her own at that and a nod- and there was a soft murmur of agreement from all of the boys. "You're pretty sure he's not gonna wake up while we're talking?" Teddie asked Naoto.

        "Fairly, yes. I woke him up just before you all came and got him to eat again, and he's established a pattern of not even moving for at least an hour after having to sit up." Naoto set the revolver down again. "I'm also nearly certain that he has fog sickness."

        Everyone exchanged grim looks. "Not surprising. He's been missing for  _months_ ," Yosuke pointed out. "That's not even taking into consideration the fact that his history has been nearly wiped off the face of the planet."

        "Yeah, that can't be good for you." Chie plopped down on the couch next to Yu. "How is he alive again?"

        "That is the question," Yu sighed, and Rise released his hand so that he could clasp them in his lap. "One I don't think we'll be getting an answer to for awhile."

        "You said something about this working out well for him, right?" Teddie asked. "In the group chat."

        "Yeah, man, what's that about?" Yosuke crossed his arms, leaning against the wall.

        "We didn't find him until after the Phantom Thieves' leader was done cooling his heels in juvie."

        There was silence for a moment. "Right, that is kinda odd," Chie muttered. "So there's like, no point to turning him in to the rest of the police force. They don't even know who he is, and the mental shutdown case is basically closed, isn't it?"

        "It is," Naoto confirmed. "Bringing it up in Tokyo again would only cause backlash, especially if I were the one to do it. They still don't like me all that much, even if I'm not banned from the area anymore."

        "The first thing you did upon returning was help the Phantom Thief get out of juvie, even if your role was pretty minor in it all." Rise gave a soft giggle. "I'm not surprised that the departments are still kind of iffy about you being around."

        "Fricking bureaucracy," Kanji muttered. "You helped too, Rise." 

        "I'm a celebrity, people are generally more forgiving. Especially since poor Kurusu-kun was innocent in it all. I don't look bad, the police do."

        "So what are we going to do with Shido's assassin?" Yukiko asked. "Given that the world has forgotten about him and he seems to refuse to die regardless."

        "I'm going to get a full confession out of him and make him pay retribution as I see fit," Naoto replied firmly. Silence followed, and Rise frowned. "The names are something that can't simply be forgiven, and I'm still finding victims. I'll stop looking for more once he recovers, but regardless of how many victims there are... something needs to be done."

        "Naoto-kun..."

        "I know how you feel about this, Rise," Yu interrupted gently. "I agree that Akechi is a victim in all this too. But that doesn't change how many people he's killed."

        "Kid just doesn't deserve to die," Kanji pointed out. "We're gonna listen to what he has to say and figure out just how much he regrets everything before even thinkin' of throwing him in a jail cell."

        "Not to mention as Chie mentioned earlier, there's not much point of trying to get him into a jail cell." Naoto clicked her tongue. "I'll be fair, Rise. You know this."

        "I know how Naoto and Kanji know Akechi-kun, but how do you and Rise-chan know him, Sensei?" Teddie asked, brows scrunched up. "You weren't ever part of those extremely dangerous treks into Mementos."

        "Ugh, don't mention Mementos." Kanji scowled, finally sitting down on the cushions around the table. Naoto clenched her hands to prevent the shudder from running through her at the thought of the dark corridors and whispers of shadows. She'd thought that her bunker was disturbing, that Adachi's version of Inaba was a mess, but the Nanatame and Nanako case was the only place in Inaba that unsettled her as much as the oppressive air of Mementos. "Place still gives me the chills whenever I think about it."

        "We were in Tokyo on tour on July 7th of last year." Rise tugged at her wavy brown hair. "Yu and I actually spoke to Akechi-kun face to face. I got a look at his Personas, we helped him study for his exams and made small talk."

        There had been a lot more to that conversation but as far as Akechi was concerned, yeah, that had been what happened. "You looked at his Personas." Chie stared at her, tone flat as she spoke. "Without him noticing- wait,  _Personas? Plural_?"

        "Personas. Plural," Yu replied, waving a hand. "We blamed the chill that comes with the Metaverse on faulty air conditioning. Not like he had any reason to not believe us."

        "I..." Rise lowered her gaze to her hands that were folded on her lap, pressing her lips together. "One of his personas seemed normal- well, you know, compared to ours. The other one was... well, it was like..."

        "Like watching your shadow dance around the pole again," Yu finished as her voice wavered, and she nodded, blinking rapidly. Everyone else in the room inhaled sharply, and Naoto dug her nails into her hand, remembering the aftermath of that conversation in the moment. It had been a lot more... raw, in the moment. "Screaming for attention yet terrified of actually receiving it, so it was covered in superficial distractions."

        "Yes," Rise whispered. "If even his  _Persona_  was chaotic and hurting the same way that my Shadow was, I... I don't know. I watched him leave and knew we wouldn't be back until after the elections, and I was terrified we'd never see him again." She waved her hands around a bit, looking up. "I'm... I'm just glad he's alive. He was all concerned about us too, and it was kind of adorable."

        "Yeah, he was warning us that Tokyo had become very dangerous for those who are friends with the police while he left. I'm pretty sure it's common knowledge that Risette is friends with the great Naoto Shirogane, so we caught the implications." Yu brushed some silver hair out of his eyes. His bangs were getting too long again, Naoto noted.

        "You got _attached_ to the tiny terror." Chie shook her head, but she was giving the two of them a small smile. "Why am I not surprised?"

        "Hey, I get along with all sorts of people." Yu arched his eyebrows at her with a small grin. "Adachi and I still manage to have conversations, remember?"

        "Somehow," Yukiko scoffed before turning to Naoto. "So the plan is to wait until he recovers, get a confession, and go from there?"

        "That is the plan, yes." Naoto nodded. "I'll keep you updated."

        "Please!" Teddie exclaimed, looking up from the novel he'd somehow gotten his hands on. 

        "I appreciate it, Naoto-kun." Rise beamed before the expression faded a bit. "No matter what you decide to do, I want to see him again. Please keep that in mind."

        "Same?" Yosuke raised a hand. "I mean, I'm probably the person who know the least of what's going on here, but if you need any help with him, I'm available."

        "I'll extend that offer as well," Yukiko added, a small smile gracing her lips. "The Inn isn't that busy during this season."

        "I appreciate it." Naoto smiled at them. "And don't worry, Rise. You'll see him again once he recovers."

        "While we're all here, do we wanna order takeout?" Kanji asked. "It's been awhile since we've just hung out and not talked about the fate of the country."

        "Thank fricking god that the mess in Tokyo is over." Yosuke barked a laugh. "But yeah. Beef bowls sound good?"

        "That sounds amazing." Chie grinned. "Been a long day for everyone I think. College still sucks."

        "Value your education," Teddie scolded, and everyone laughed at his high-pitched attempt to sound serious that was totally ruined by his grin. 

        "I'm going to go check on Akechi." Naoto stood up, picking up the small pile and doing her best to not narrow her eyes at the revolver. That was _not_ staying in the same room as him. "Just don't order without me."

        "Yessir." Yu smiled, waving her off, and she smiled back, heading down the hall. Finding with no small amount of amusement that the tension had just about been lifted entirely off of her shoulders.

        Yosuke's sentiment was wholeheartedly shared. With Akechi found, the mess in Tokyo was over and she knew that she was getting herself into an entirely new mess. But it was just one child with a horrible tale to tell instead of the world ending, and it was clear that her friends had her back. She could handle this last loose end that was a lot more than that terminology described, even if she couldn't plan ahead.

-

**Alibaba:**  Akira

**Alibaba:**  Akira akira akira akira

**Me:**  What up Futaba?

**Me:**  It's only been a day, you miss me that much? ;)

**Alibaba:** Yes I miss you dummy

**Alibaba:** As for what up

**Alibaba:** I dunno

**Alibaba:** But Im like

**Alibaba:**  Hhhhhhhhhhhh

**Me:** Breathe

**Me:** On a scale of one to ten, how serious is this?

**Alibaba:** I DON'T KNOW

**Alibaba:** Like it has the potential to be a 10 but if I'm wrong its probs a 3

        Akira frowned at his phone, sitting up. That was vague, even for Futaba. Morgana hopped up onto the bed. "What's the matter, who is it?"

        "It's Futaba, let me concentrate. Sounds like it could be something important." Morgana made a displeased noise, but Akira was entirely used to  _those_ by now. He began typing out a response.

**Me:** Explain the situation.

**Alibaba:** Hhhhhng you're even using consistent grammer

**Alibaba:** If this isn't what it looks like I'mma look real dumb

**Alibaba:** Or paranoid

**Me:** Oracle.

**Alibaba:** oh god okay

**Alibaba:** Soooo you remember how I wiretapped Crow's phone?

**Me:** Hard-pressed to forget something that saved my life

**Alibaba:** I never took the app off. And he can't get rid of it with a reboot

**Me:**  Futaba, Akechi is dead. Why does this matter?

        It actually almost physically hurt to type that. Akira pressed his lips together, forcing his brain not to flash back to the desperation in the older boy's voice, the gunshots, the defeat on everyone's faces. The rage that had come back in full force when they'd faced Shido's Shadow- not to mention the grating fact that  _no one_ remembered that Akechi ever even  _existed._

        He wasn't thinking about this. He wasn't dwelling on it again. Morgana began purring softly. "Akira...?"

        "Talking about Phantom Thieves stuff... well. Akechi." Akira sighed.

**Alibaba:**  The signal from my wiretap showed up again.

        ... _What._

        Akira stared at his phone, registering Morgana jumping up onto his shoulders, and Futaba kept typing.

**Alibaba:** Hasn't done that in months

**Alibaba:** And then since I got home it's just been consistently on my computer like HI I EXIST

**Alibaba:**  except for the fact that it is TOTALLY NOT SUPPOSED TO

**Alibaba:** his signal disappeared

**Alibaba:** I KNOW HIS SIGNAL DISAPPEARED JOKER

**Alibaba:**  his entire HISTORY DISAPPEARED

**Alibaba:** HIS INTERNET PRESENCE BOOM GONE

**Alibaba:** everything that Goro Akechi was vanished with a gunshot, even the contact name on our phones if not the number

**Alibaba:** AND SUDDENLY IN THIS SMALL TOWN CALLED INABA

**Alibaba:** HIS PHONE JUST EXISTS

**Alibaba:** AND I'M KINDA PANICKING

        "No way," Morgana breathed. "He... he couldn't have- there's no way he got out of there! That engine room was almost completely sealed off, and he totally got erased! There's... there's not really a way to come back from that..."

        "I...I don't..." He didn't know. He wasn't the Metaverse expert, that was Futaba and Morgana, and they were both obviously stumped.

        Goro Akechi could be alive.

        Goro Akechi might not have died.

        The boulder on his chest might be able to be shoved off after all.

  **Me:** Give me a moment

        He set his phone down and brought his hands up to his hair. "Holy crap. Morgana, you're certain there's absolutely no way he got out of there?" Honestly he just needed to talk, he'd thought about that moment on the goddamn cruise ship far, far too often while in juvenile hall, alone with no one to bounce ideas off of.

        "I mean, I'm not  _certain._  We were on the other side of a wall," Morgana replied, tone entirely serious as he jumped down onto the bed. "But Futaba said both his and the cognitive version of himself-" God that THING still gave Akira nightmares- "Vanished. And she's like, never wrong. So hypothetically, let's say that he managed to snake his way out of the engine room while killing his cognitive double and outrunning the Shadows. That does not in any way explain why or how Yaldaboath erased him."

        "That and we would have heard him running," Akira muttered. Yaldaboath and erasure, it always came back to Yaldaboath and erasure. He'd been so certain that was the final nail in Akechi's coffin, and it had driven a nail into his heart as well.

         _"I was extremely particular about my grades, my looks, my public image, so SOMEONE would want me around! I am an ace detective! A CELEBRITY! But you- you're just criminal trash living in an attic! So HOW? How does someone like you have things I don't?"_

        Being completely forgotten by the world was the one thing that Akira was certain that Akechi actually feared. He couldn't pretend to understand the other boy, but... he'd like to think he knew some things. "I don't know, Akira," Morgana admitted plainly.

        Akira grabbed his phone. Futaba was giving him his moment. He took a breath.

**Me:**  Keep this under wraps for now.

**Me:** But tell me if that signal disappears

**Alibaba:**  Roger that

**Alibaba:** Maybe we'll wait until we all meet up in person again to discuss this

**Me:** Yes, that's a good plan

**Alibaba:**  Okay

**Alibaba:**  Thanks for listening

**Me:** I can't very well ignore my best girl

**Alibaba:** HAHA. 

        "Akira!" his mom's voice called. "Dinner!"

        Akira sent Futaba a quick goodbye and stood up with a quiet sigh. Morgana hopped to the floor. "We'll figure it out," the cat promised. "We always do."

        "I know. Thanks, man."

        "Psssshh, no problem at all. Do you think your mom got fatty tuna?"

        "We'll see." They headed downstairs, and Akira did his best to shove thoughts of Goro Akechi to the back of his mind. Looked like he was looking up what was so special about Inaba tonight and why a phone belonging to a person who technically never existed might end up there.

        After dinner, though. It wasn't fair to his parents to make them deal with Joker when they finally had their son back.


	4. Give and Give... and Give...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Love cannot survive alone. This is something Goro Fujiwara learned too young.
> 
> Akechi continues to recover.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Interesting factoid, this is actually the chapter I wrote first. It's been heavily edited since then, but this is where the entire fic began. Offscreen suicide ahead, prepare yourselves.

_There's nothing real when the world is cold_

        "Mommy, I found a really pretty rock in the gardens at school." Little hands reached up, holding a rock dark as night. "My teacher said I could keep it, and I thought that you might like it."

        "What use would I have for a rock, Goro?" The woman looked up from her hands that were resting in her lap, though, her dark blue eyes meeting his beaming red. Her lips pressed together slightly, but she lifted one delicate hand and took the rock from him. "Are you just trying to be thoughtful, then?"

        "I want to make you happy, Mommy."

        Hitomi Fujiwara studied the rock, the light brown hair she shared with her son falling to hide her face. "Well... at least you're trying."

_When all that glitters is not gold_

        "Mom, we made paper flowers for Mother's Day." Goro placed the paper red carnation on his mother's desk, hopeful smile fading when she didn't return it. "I... tried to make it pretty for you."

        Her eyes flicked down to the flower. "So you did," she replied flatly, picking it up and placing it in the can where her pencils were. Goro smiled at his gift being accepted before it slowly faded when she began talking again. "Your father used to bring me yellow tulips all the time, you know." Her voice was soft, dangerous. "Everything he gave me was yellow until the red spider lily and the white suitopi." Her eyes flicked to him. "I can't help but wonder if the spider lily is what cursed me with you." 

        "I love you, Mom," Goro replied, keeping his hands at his sides instead of lifting them hopefully like he'd done when he'd brought her gifts in the past. "I brought you the flower because I made it and I love you."

        She snorted. "If your father couldn't love, and I can no longer love because of him, why should our child be able to?"

_When the fog obscures your vision_

        "Can you hate him for me, Goro?" she whispered. The room was dark, she'd torn all of the pictures he'd scribbled for her in his seven years of living from the walls, torn the bed apart, torn the entire room apart. She was holding him now, the fit was over, both of them were trembling. Him from fear. He wasn't sure what was making her tremble. "He made me like this. Masayoshi Shido made me like this."

        "Masayoshi Shido made you like this," he parroted through silent tears, hoping it would keep her from going back to ruining her room. He hugged her more tightly. "I hate him."

        "I'm sorry..." she gently stroked his hair as she whispered. "No child should be cursed with the genes of a man who twists everything he touches."

        "I won't be like my father. I won't do that."

        "You already are twisting everything you touch."

_What's the point in precision?_

        Goro held the ice pack to his face, looking down at his clenched fist in the car. Silence permeated the air between the air and his mother, as it had since they'd started driving home from school.

        For once, far as he knew anyway, she was the first to break the silence. "Dissociative Identity Disorder, hmm?"

        "Don't know what that means," he replied shortly. "Does it have to do with that cognitive stuff that you used to be a part of?"

        "...Something like that." Her hands clenched on the steering wheel. "So you _have_ been reading my journals."

        "Maybe, maybe not. I don't know where the other me would have gotten that information. I don't know how I know half of what I do, you know?"

        She arched an eyebrow at him, and he gave her a sharp, slightly empty-eyed smile. Pleased to get a reaction out of her even if it wasn't love in any sense of the word. Her disappointment would suffice for him, even he knew somewhere that it wouldn't be enough for his other self. "Why didn't you tell me about this? Either of you?"

        "Dunno about him, probably because he didn't want to be seen as more of a disappointment than usual. I thought you wouldn't be interested. You've never been interested in your failure of a son."

        "You shouldn't get into fights." Her voice was softer. "Especially if it's simply over people insulting me."

        His grin grew before he winced, dropping the expression to favor the bruise on his cheek. "Don't be silly, Mom. I still love you, even if I resent you at times."

        "I wonder if your father ever feels the same..."

_But just wait, a light will come_

        "Will we ever stop moving?" Goro looked up from drawing a messy eagle, blinking when his mother actually came near him to examine the picture. 

        "Probably not."

        "Oh." Goro frowned, but he knew that she was telling the truth. They moved every time she lost her job, after all... and she always eventually lost her job. "I...I just don't like having to start over every time I move to a new school. It's hard."

        She tilted her head. "You're nine years old, boy." Her voice turned bitter. "Old enough to know that everything in life is hard."

_It's up to you to reach out_

        "Nothing I do is ever enough, is it?" Goro snapped at his mother, cutting up his blankets and tying them into knots on the living room floor. She watched him, her dark blue eyes emptier than they had ever been, a bottle of sake held between her legs as she sat on the couch. The room was a mess, it was always a mess, both of their lives were a _mess_. "Disappointment, disappointment, disappointment, that's all I'll ever be, all we'll ever be, I don't even know why he tries."

        "Neither do I," she replied softly. "Nothing good can come from so much broken."

        "They talk about me all the time despite his efforts." Goro kept tying knots. "Cause I'm always the new kid. Always the odd man out. Always the weird one. No one sees me anything other than broken, so either you're right or the world's rotten."

        She watched him for another moment before standing, stumbling slightly, placing the bottle on the nightstand. "Little Loki." He blinked, looking up at her. "If the world was rotten, would you bring about Ragnarok?"

        "What?" He tilted his head, but he'd had enough experience with his mother being drunk to know that she was likely talking about something she'd read once. He knew she had once been brilliant. A great historian who doubled in psychology, both impressive titles from what he'd heard from adults. She hadn't touched a book in years that he'd seen, but he was pretty sure she had a store of knowledge from before him and his father.

        "You're only ten years old and yet have such a capability to destroy." Her empty gaze landed on the blankets he was taking out his frustration on. "I wonder if your father was the same way."

        "Why do you always compare me to him?" Goro picked up his scissors again and began cutting up more ribbons to tie knots in, scowling down at his trembling hands and cutting more quickly. "Do I even exist to you?"

        "You should look up the entomology behind the name I gave you sometime," was her response. This was the longest she'd ever looked at him, but he didn't feel comfortable under her gaze for once. He shifted, looking down at the blankets again. "Loki suits you, I think. You've been coming out more and more recently."

        He snorted. "What's other me, then?"

        "Far quieter. Far more forgiving. Far more fake." His scowl deepened. "The world won't treat you kindly, little one. Either of you. You're my son, after all."

        "Go to bed, Mom." He didn't want to deal with this today, not after a fight at school, immunizations and people glaring at both him and her all day. The pity party was seriously grating on him, and though he knew it was all his father's fault, he was still annoyed. She should be grateful he was taking that annoyance out on the blankets instead of her.

        She stood there for another moment, then drifted over to her room, closing the door. He kept cutting up the blankets, setting the scissors down so he could begin knotting them again. It was stupid, it was all so _stupid_ , he wasn't the problem, people and she shouldn't be taking it out on-

        A sudden sharp noise that was about as loud as a train whistle nearly made him jump out of his skin, a cracking sound that hurt his ears and came from his mother's room. It was very quickly followed by a thud.

        The silence that followed was almost suffocating. Goro stared at the closed door, slowly putting the knotted blankets down, anger forgotten in the face of shock and a growing apprehension. "...Mom?"

_And hold out when you finally face the truth_

        Naoto Shirogane stared at the details of the case on the laptop, sighing. Well, with this evidence, it was obvious that the perp was the suspect she had found the day before. He had the most obvious motive for robbing the store as well.

        There was a shift from the kitchen, and she blinked, looking that way. Nearly jumping out of her skin when she saw Akechi standing over the kitchen counter, blood soaking through the bandages on his shoulder. He didn't seem to notice her, entirely focused on whatever was on the counter, tangled brown hair covering most of his face. The fever flush was still on his face from what she could see and he still didn't seem entirely... there.

        She took a breath, composing herself. Alright. He was suddenly mobile. She supposed she would have to deal with that accordingly. She closed her laptop, standing, and he looked up at the movement. Smiling distantly when he saw her, red eyes still slightly glazed. Still definitely out of it, then. "Were you looking for fresh bandages?" she inquired, heading over to the cabinet that the first aid was kept in.

        "Mmhm. It opened again." He looked back down at the counter, and she could see that there was a piece of paper on it now. "Are these song lyrics?"

        Ah. "Yes. My friend wrote them. She left them here when she last came over and hasn't had the opportunity to come back for them." She came over with bandages and rubbing alcohol in hand. "Sit, and lean on the counter so I can get at the wound."

        He sat obediently, leaning back against the counter as she undid the bloodied bandages. "I got hurt in elementary school once," he remarked, voice distant now. "Punched in the face. I only got one ice pack for it." He looked at her, a bit of lucidity sharpening his gaze. "I still don't understand why you're so concerned for my well-being, Nao."

        "Shirogane-san," she corrected firmly. "Only Kanji is allowed to call me that, yes?"

        "...Yes." The response was hesitant, and she inwardly sighed. So he was still having trouble retaining memories. This could be a potential problem with keeping him in his room, he was generally obedient, but if he didn't remember her telling him to stay in there, he could wander out again. "Um..."

        Right, his question. "I want answers from you. Your death and erasure from existence aren't about to be decided by Yaldabaoth. If you are to die, it will be on the terms of humans who care enough to see the justice behind it."

        "That sounds very fair." He hummed softly. "Life isn't fair, though."

        "That doesn't mean we can't try to make it that way." Naoto began gently applying the rubbing alcohol, and he winced, but he'd gone quiet. Retreating into his own world of delirium again. She allowed herself one audible sigh as she bandaged up the gunshot wound and gently levered him back to his feet to guide him back to his room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Neurosis (Wikipedia Definition): May be defined simply as a "poor ability to adapt to one's environment, an inability to change one's life patterns, and the inability to develop a richer, more complex, more satisfying personality."
> 
> Maternity Neurosis: Something I'm pretty sure Shido's goons made up to make Futaba feel even worse since there is no official definition anywhere. Basically the above definition with the added bonus of it only affecting mothers.
> 
> The term still fits Hitomi here, especially the poor ability to adapt to her environment.


	5. Recieve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Naoto is busy and Kanji gets Akechi for an afternoon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kind of a cuter, more lighthearted chapter- as much as I can get with Akechi lol. Plot will pick up again next chapter, I swear. Hope you enjoy, though.

        " _In any case, I can't ignore this call in and I also can't leave Akechi here alone. He's being obedient, but he's also restless and I can tell that he's agitated by how much moving around I've been doing over the past ten minutes._ "

        "So you want me to come over, pick him up, and watch him at the store for however long it takes for you and the higher-ups to finally close the lid on their mess," Kanji summarized, eyeing his his fourwheeler, helmet already dangling from his hand that he wasn't using to hold his phone. "That ain't gonna be a problem, Nao. The store does have a back room that he can hang out in, and I'll explain the situation a bit to Mom."

        " _Just try not to bungle that explanation, oaf._ " He could practically hear about half the weight and stress lift from his girlfriend's voice as the slightly harsh comment was made and couldn't help but smile. He was used to her odd ways of showing affection nowadays, was pretty sure she was also used to his. " _Right. I'll keep getting ready and let him know that you're coming. I really need to get out the door._ "

        The call cut off abruptly, and Kanji tucked the phone into his pocket before putting his helmet on. "Got an errand to run for Miss Uptight Detective, be back in a bit!" he called toward the store.

        "Drive safely, honey!" his mother called back after a moment.

        "Always do," Kanji muttered wryly to himself, quickly mounting his fourwheeler and heading out into the streets of Inaba.

        Naoto's minivan was already gone when he reached the Shirogane mansion, and he shook his head slightly, heading over to the gates and punching in the passcode to open them. Wondering how the kid was doing and if he'd even be recognized. It had been a couple of days since he'd been here after all, and he and Naoto had both noticed Akechi's seeming inability to remember things like names, information, or faces.

        He hoped he'd be recognized. Akechi, while clingy and dependent right now, had been dangerous once. He didn't know what would happen if the boy thought he was faced with a stranger after he'd been left alone for a bit.

        He sighed, going up to the door and opening it. Naoto had left it unlocked, evidently. Akechi immediately peeked around the doorway to the living room, hopeful expression flinching into sudden wariness. "Hey, Akechi," Kanji greeted him cautiously, relief moving through him when the boy blinked, visibly perking up. "You remember me at all?"

        He barely had time to even flinch before Akechi was down the hall, throwing his arms around him and burying his face in his chest, whimpering something intelligible. Body still uncomfortably warm, but it wasn't burning nearly as much as it had been the last time he'd come here. He also seemed to have quite a bit of his strength back, the fact that he'd gotten down the hall as quickly as he had attesting to that. "T...T... I don't remember," the boy mumbled.

        "It's Tatsumi," Kanji sighed, bringing a hand up to tousle Akechi's shaggy brown hair. He or Nao really needed to cut it, it was beginning to sneak past his shoulders. "Easy there. You wouldn't want to open your wound again and ruin your shirt."  _My old shirt._  It had been awhile since he'd seen that old black tank top from his first year in high school. It was still a little baggy on Akechi's slender frame, but overall it fit rather well. He might have to adjust it later, the fact that it almost fit but not quite was bothering him.

        Akechi took his arms back, moving away and rubbing his eyes, and Kanji focused on how dazed he still looked instead of the now scars on his arms. "N... um..."

        "Shirogane. She, uh, did tell me you've been calling her Nao." Kanji rubbed the back of his head. "Can't believe you latched onto that of all things."

        The shadow of an amused smile flickered on Akechi's lips before the expression faded back to his usual distant one. "She said you were taking me somewhere."

        "Yup. Tatsumi Textiles. Told my mom that I'd help out at the store today and Nao and I have been thinking that getting you out of the house might do you some good." Akechi looked up at him somewhat blankly. "We'll probs just have you hang out in one of the back rooms. Find you something to do if you get bored back there, but you're prob'ly still having trouble focusing on stuff, yeah?" He sighed when the boy nodded hesitantly. "Well... we'd best continue this conversation, there, then. You ever ridden a fourwheeler before?"

        "... No?"

        Looked like he had his work cut out for him today. Kanji gestured for the boy to follow him out of the house and he obeyed. His usual obedience making it easy to get him on the fourwheeler and get back out onto the streets- though he  _did_ have to tell him to loosen his grip once on the way, because  _jeez_ , those arms were just about crushing the life out of him. _Note to self and for Nao. Akechi is much, much stronger than he looks despite the fact that he was practically bedridden for a week._

        Still, they got to the store, parked the fourwheeler, and he managed to coax a now trembling Akechi to let go of him by again warning him about opening his wound before they headed inside. "Welcome back, dear." His mother looked up from the cloth she was setting out, eyes immediately lighting on Akechi, who moved more behind Kanji, wary again. "Oh? Who's this?"

        "Someone our friends found and Nao decided to take in for a while." Kanji reached back to gently tousle Akechi's hair, saw the tension in the boy's shoulders ease slightly at the touch. "He has fog sickness."

        "Oh, the poor dear." His mother put a hand to her heart, and Kanji silently thanked the stars that she was taking the explanation he was offering. At this rate, he wouldn't have to lie at all- well he supposed that the fog sickness thing was a _bit_ of a stretch, but it was the best explanation for what was wrong. "I didn't know that was still going around. That's what Naoto has been busy with, then?"

        "Yep. He's scared of being left alone in a building and all, we haven't gotten why out of him yet." Kanji shrugged. "Nao has some big case to take care of today, though, so I was thinking he could hang out in the back room."

        "Of course. But... if he has fog sickness, shouldn't he be in the hospital?"

        "N-no." Akechi moved closer to Kanji as he gave a wild shake of his head, and worry entered his mother's eyes. "No," Akechi repeated, quieter this time but still insistent.

        "Both of us don't think he'd do so hot in a hospital..." Kanji explained, and he saw Akechi relax a bit, looking back down at the floor. "And he's generally responsive, even though his head's a bit of a mess, so there ain't much of a point to fancy equipment."

        "I understand. Well, you're welcome to stay as long as you want, all right?" Akechi looked up a bit, giving another one of his hesitant nods. "And Kanji, be sure to check up on him often."

        "Will do." He gently ushered Akechi toward the back room, grimacing when he heard the shop door open behind them. "You try to get some rest, all right?" he told the boy, opening the door to the back room. "You're still looking terrible. I'll come in to check on you in a bit."

        "Kay," Akechi mumbled distractedly, stepping into the room and looking around with interest at all the shelves filled with spare fabric and failed projects. Kanji took a deep breath, closing the door and going to deal with the customer.

***********

        Four hours later, during which he peeked in on the back room frequently, he opened the door to see that Akechi was still awake, sitting propped against one of the shelves, staring at one of his failed projects- a wolf with a black kerchief. As he had been the last time Kanji had come in. "Hello, Tatsumi-san."

        "Heya." Kanji slid into the room, closing the door behind him. "Shop's closed up for the night, I promised Ma I'd lock up."

        "Mmhm." The response was distant, and his eyes hadn't left the wolf. Kanji looked around the room- not even a single piece of cloth out of place. "They were quieter today."

        "Excuse me?"

        "Normally I can't get them to leave when I'm alone. They're confused, always arguing about things I don't understand or should understand, but can't seem to grasp. It makes my head hurt." Akechi sighed softly, resting his head in the crook of the arm that was on the shelf, gaze still not leaving the wolf. "I kinda pretended they were talking to the stuffed animals, or I was talking to the stuffed animals. Wonder if there's a difference."

        Kanji silently filed the gist of that rambling away to tell Nao about later- she insisted on monitoring every little thing Akechi said. Still overly thorough, that one, but he supposed it was another one of the things he had learned to love about her. "You like that one?"

        "Yeah. It's cute. Why's it back here?"

        "The white splotch under the kerchief is off. I've made better ones since that one, but it is the original model, so I couldn't bring myself to throw it out."

        "Really?" Akechi lifted his head, reaching for the wolf before hesitating, causing Kanji to lift an eyebrow. "Um... could I..."

        "Yeah, go ahead and check it if you want to." Akechi's tired expression seemed to brighten a bit, and he took the wolf off of the shelf without any hesitation, checking under the kerchief. Kanji couldn't help but smile... it was just so much like something Nao would do. She'd probably tell him he was being an idiot and that the wolf overall looked fine, but he still couldn't bring himself to sell it when he  _knew_ the ruff was off. However... "Nao keeps telling me I'm too hard on my projects. Do you want to keep that one?"

        Akechi blinked, looking up and tilting his head. "Keep it?"

        "Yeah. Something to keep you company in that room of yours." Kanji rubbed the back of his head. "You said that they helped with your being alone issue, didn't you?"

        "Well, yes, but..." Akechi lifted the wolf, studying it, then gave a small, wistful smile. "You know I have no way to pay for this."

        "I meant as a gift, kid."

        Akechi froze. Lowered the wolf and stared at him, mouth opening, then closing. Kanji stared back, confused- what was  _that_ reaction? Akechi obviously liked and wanted the wolf and it was just collecting dust back here so what was the- "G-gift?" the boy managed to get out, slowly lifting up the wolf again and staring at it instead. "You're giving me..." 

        Tears suddenly welled up in his red eyes, and once again, before Kanji could even react, the boy was on his feet, throwing his arms around him again. "Wh-whoa-"

        "Thank you, thank you,  _thank you!_ " Akechi squealed, and then let go and hugged the stuffed wolf to his chest. "G-gift!  _Gift!_ " he laughed, sobbing and to Kanji's alarm, coughing soon intermingled with it. "Gifts mean love, I'm  _loved, I'm loved,_ I'm... I don't... deserve..."

        His sudden ecstasy faded as fast as it had come, and he just coughed now, looking up at Kanji, a slightly dazed expression on his face again. Obviously exhausted from his outburst. Kanji couldn't do anything but stare as even the coughs petered out, the gears in his head slowly coming together to one conclusion. Akechi had rarely been given gifts if that reaction was anything to go by. Not only that, but he had learned to equate gifts with love, and if he had never been given a gift... and that last bit spoke of a guilty conscience...

        He and Naoto suddenly had a _lot_ to talk about. "I think that's enough excitement for one day." He placed a hand Akechi's uninjured shoulder. "Let's get you home, kid."

        "Home," he agreed distantly, and followed Kanji out of the store, clutching to the stuffed wolf like a lifeline.


	6. Awake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akechi's fever breaks and he and Naoto have a short conversation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The poor boy's finally (mostly) back ahaha. Hope you enjoy the new chapter!

        He woke up.

        ... _That_ wasn't supposed to happen.

        Akechi stirred in the blankets someone had put over him, swallowing to try and get rid of the dryness in his throat. There was something fluffy in his arms, and his pillow and blankets were both damp with sweat. He put a hand up to his temple, finding that while his hair was still damp, his skin was relatively dry.

        What _happened?_  He sat up, letting the blanket fall from his shoulders, blinking bleary red eyes at the moonlight filtering in through the tightly closed window. Shook his head slowly to try and get rid of the rest of the grogginess and the slight headache that was starting to form just behind his eyes. He'd been asleep for far too long, he could tell, and he wasn't about to stay relaxed in an unfamiliar environment.  _Observe. Deduct._ It was a nice room. Spacious if rather bare save for a TV. Not a terribly big TV, but still functional and not so small that it would be hard to see things... it just wasn't big enough for someone to say, crawl through.

        He winced as a lance of pain shot through his head at that thought, and he shook his head again.  _Focus._ The floor and futon were of nice, sensible quality. He slowly uncurled his arms around the fluffy thing in his arms and found it to be a plush of a gray wolf wearing a black kerchief that had suffered the same fate as his pillow and blankets-being damp with- apparently- his sweat. He turned it over in his hands. It seemed to be homemade, but of good quality.  _A gift._

        Akechi froze at that thought, hazy memories slowly coming back. Faceless people with strange voices caring for him. Cool cloths, delicious soup, warm hands. Crying tears of joy over this wolf before sinking into despondency because he didn't deserve...

_We've been looking for you for a beary long time._

        Bear.  _Bear._ He didn't quite have a grasp on how or what said bear looked like, but he knew he'd been dragged out of the Metaverse. For some reason he didn't understand, they'd dragged him out of the Metaverse, nursed him back to health, and had given him a stuffed wolf simply because he'd wanted to study it for a moment. There was no longer a gaping hole in his shoulder and the wounds on his arms were now either gone or scars. They'd let him stay in their house instead of in a cell.

_Not Joker, then_. Kurusu bent the rules to his own view of justice, but if he'd been caught by the Phantom Thieves, he'd be in a cell or in that attic, staring at the banner with the motto  _Take Your Heart_  emblazoned on it in bold, newspaper cut-out script. His current situation could either be far better or far worse- and with the life that he had lived, Akechi had learned to always,  _always_ learned to expect the worst. It was what he deserved, after all.

        How long had he been down for the count, anyways? He reached for Robin Hood and Loki, but they were oddly quiet, and the static in his head just grew louder around their seemingly dormant presences. He thought this over, then sighed, shaking his head. Everything was far too fuzzy. It could have been a week, it could have been a month, or anywhere in between. He doubted it was less than a week, though, couldn't be with how his wounds had healed. And he could ask, he supposed. The pair that he vaguely remembered would likely tell him.

        He shifted on the futon again, looking toward the door, noting that it wasn't locked. They trusted him quite a bit, didn't they? Either he'd been really pathetic or they had no idea what he'd done. Either way... He slowly, carefully and shakily got to his feet, cringing when he put too much weight on his injured shoulder and avoiding it after that. Leaving the wolf on the futon after a moment of hesitation. He wasn't a child, he didn't need to bring it with him... no matter how comforting the fluffiness and the fact that he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that it had been a gift were. It could stay in here, and it would. 

        He moved over to the door, wobbling on his feet only twice before managing to be completely steady, placing a hand on the doorknob and opening it, cautiously looking out into the dim hallway beyond. Recognizing it a little bit. The house he was in was bigger than most, and the kitchen and living area were... to the left. The baths were to the right. Shouldn't go right if he wanted to see the people who we're taking care of him, which he did, so he eased himself off of the door and moved left, down the hall.

        He had to brace himself on the wall a couple of times, shaking his head against sudden waves of dizziness, but he could hear the sound of someone typing now, so he continued toward it, ignoring how heavy his body was beginning to feel.

        He peered into the living room, and a woman with short dark blue hair wearing a white tank top glanced up from her computer to meet his gaze. Dark blue eyes widening just slightly before settling back into a neutral expression. "Come in here and sit down." She gestured to a chair across from her. "You're very nearly spent from walking."

        She could tell, huh? Akechi moved into the room, doing as she had said, shifting uncomfortably under her gaze. The familiarity moving beyond... beyond... he didn't know. He'd look at it later. "I... I know you've been taking care of me for some time- thank you for that- but I don't remember your name."

        "Naoto Shirogane." She closed her laptop, eyes still studying him with unnerving intensity. "You've had trouble remembering my name from the beginning, I'm not surprised that you don't remember now."

        Naoto Shirogane? That... sounded really, really familiar, and not only because her voice was now echoing in his mind.  _Shirogane-san. Only Tatsumi-san is allowed to call me that, yes?_  No, from somewhere else. Actually, with a hat, and... he blinked. She wasn't a man, but the resemblance... "The First Advent of the Detective Prince?"

        She tilted her head, eyes narrowing slightly. "That's correct. You really are fully awake now." His confusion must have been showing on his face because her expression softened for the first time. "You've been delirious for nearly two weeks now. Ever since Teddie dragged you out of the Metaverse and brought you to me."

        "Teddie," he muttered, and winced as he tried once again to remember what that bear looked like. He supposed... supposed that wasn't exactly important right now. He'd been out of commission for two weeks with a fever, and before that...

        Before that... before that had been endless wandering. Just another Shadow on the endless paths of the cognitive realm, unable to leave, Robin Hood and Loki getting over their squabble of how that showdown with his father's cognitive version of himself should have ended in order to help him survive. Loki driving their refusal to fade. A shudder ran through him, and he gave a full body flinch when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up to see concern on Shirogane-san's face. "Are you all right?" she asked.

        A note of command in her voice cleared worst the haziness and he sat up a bit straighter, causing her to remove her hand and take a step back, but she kept her eyes firmly on his. Where... had he seen her before? "...Fine," he replied after a moment. "But if you know about the Metaverse and were looking for me specifically, you must know what I've done." Somehow. He wasn't as surprised about her knowing as perhaps he should be, for some reason. _God,_ his head was a mess.

        "I do know what you've done, yes."

        "Then why did you save me?" He broke eye contact, staring at the floor instead. He liked to think that he was good at reading people, but her expression was about as elusive as Joker's was, and she didn't even have glasses or a mask blocking her eyes. "And if you didn't like the thought of me dying, why am I here? If you know what I've done, then you know that I deserve at the very least a prison sentence."

        "You deserve  _something_  at least." Her voice had taken on a slightly cold tone now, and he stiffened. "The names are something that can't simply be forgiven. But prison is no longer an option and whether or not you deserve death is still up for debate. You're young still... far too young to have been caught up in Masayoshi Shido's schemes. And no one deserves to be simply forgotten the way that you were."

_Those who have no place in the cognitive world no longer have a place in the real world either._

        He looked up at her again, glad that she was facing away from him now. "So... I wasn't imagining it. The lack of whispers, the near complete absence of cognitive versions of me. I really was wiped from existence."

        "I still can't believe it," she breathed softly, steely anger in the edges of her expression. "Sae Niijima remembers who you are, and I have no doubts that Sojiro Sakura does as well. They have too many ties to those who were almost completely erased and to you to not remember. As for Persona users, they would be completely unaffected by the distortion."

        "How... do you know all of this?" he asked tentatively. "And Teddie? I know he's something like Morgana, but I thought-"

        "You and the Phantom Thieves are not the only ones who have used that world," she replied lightly, turning back to him and once again locking gazes with him. "And that blot on the cognitive realm that called himself a god is not the first threat that humanity has given itself. He's arguably the largest threat that's become present, but I myself am a Persona user that had to save others from dying by the cognitive world."

        He stared up at her, knowing she wasn't lying, but that... he winced again, looking down. His thoughts were spiraling out of control, down several paths and it was making his head hurt. "But why did you save me?"

        "I want to know your side of the story. Something I plan to get out of you soon now that you're capable of holding a conversation... but not today." Her voice softened considerably. "I can see you still need time in order to recall what you need to for that, and if I push you you're likely to break down again." That might explain the kindness. She needed him to be coherent in order to get what she wanted, not that he knew  _why_ she would want it. He was a murderer, plain and simple. He needed to be punished for his crimes, if he wasn't then she wasn't doing her job, and he knew that she was devoted to her work. Her spotless record had been brought up more than a few times in whispers among the police, though he supposed she did have her secrets- her gender for one, her knowledge of the Metaverse another. 

        And... there was something... a manila folder and frustration...

        "Akechi?"

        He blinked, stirring, looking up at her again to see that she'd gotten closer again, concern on her features. That note of command back in her voice. "I'm sorry, must have zoned out for a second there."

        "Obviously." The concerned look didn't fade and even though the word was sharp, the tone didn't match it. "I was just asking if you were hungry."

        "I... I guess I am, yes." He curled up in the chair slightly, arms moving to hold something that he realized wasn't there. God, just how long had he had that wolf? Too long if he was automatically looking to it for comfort. 

        Shirogane-san picked up a cushion off of the couch, and she handed it to him. After a moment of hesitation, he hugged it close to his chest, looking away from her. "I'll warm up some soup for you. Try not to stress yourself out too much. I've been waiting for this story for some time now, I can wait a bit longer."

        He nodded distantly in agreement, looking up just as she moved into the kitchen. Hesitating a moment before calling out. "What's the date?"

        "April 3rd," she called back. "We found you on March 20th, if you were wondering."

        "And the leader of the Phantom Thieves?"

        A pause. Akechi opened his mouth to clarify, knowing that probably hadn't been as clear as it needed to be, but then she answered again. "Cleared of all charges. It took awhile, but his record is completely clear now."

        Thank goodness. He let himself slide down in the chair a bit, still hugging the pillow to his chest, thankful that Kurusu was no longer suffering because of him or his father. He deserved peace after all he'd been through. 

        He cast another tired glance around the living room before letting his eyes close for a moment, mind too awake for him to fall asleep even though his body was nearly spent. He just needed to sort himself out for now. Sort out everything else when he felt well enough to, though he wasn't optimistic of the chances of that happening. He'd never been good at pulling himself together completely.


	7. The Blood Will Stain Your Hands if You Take Mine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The world has not, in fact, ended when expected. Akechi accepts this and begins picking up the pieces of his life. He also has several conversations.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song for this chapter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYuaMcVd3-c
> 
> Not gonna say too much before this chapter other than I loved writing the conversations. :) Hope you enjoy this!

        "Akechi."

        Akechi sighed, stopped drifting, and rolled over in the blankets, blinking bleary red eyes towards the door. The knocking had been firm, her voice the same stern tone he'd gotten used to over the past three days. Well... he supposed he'd _been_ used to it before he'd been fully aware that he was, in fact, alive. "You can come in," he replied quietly. As if she needed his permission. This was her house.

        She slid the door open, arching an eyebrow when she met his gaze. "It's noon."

        Yep, just like yesterday. She was holding a bowl again too- it smelled faintly like meat. She was in full uniform, though, her torso deceptively slender and masculine under her blue jacket, and that blue cap he'd taken to associating with the First Advent of the Detective Prince perched on her head. "I haven't felt much like getting up," he muttered, which was the truth. He sat up, though, setting the wolf aside because the food smelled good and he knew she wouldn't be leaving without talking to him. "I'm... I'm just tired. Still."

        "Is that so?" He kept his gaze on the wolf as he heard the door slide closed and her footsteps approaching. "You're not likely to gain any strength back if you stay cooped up in this room all of the time." There was a rustle- she was kneeling next to him. He forced himself to turn his gaze back to her just in time to confirm that she was kneeling close and holding out a bowl filled with beef and rice, a pair of chopsticks resting on top. "Takeout. Didn't have much time for cooking today."

        "So you are dressed for work." He'd thought so- he might as well eat if she was bringing him food while she was busy, even if he didn't feel that hungry, so he picked up the chopsticks. 

        "Had to go in early this morning. You didn't even move when I knocked on the door before leaving, so I figured you'd be fine alone for a few hours."  _Judging from yesterday._ "I have to go in again pretty soon here, but I had some time to come home and get a bowl for you."

        "You really didn't have to go to the trouble."

        "Would you have eaten today otherwise?"

        There was the fleeting thought that he could lie. Just smile the way he did whenever someone asked about the bags under his eyes back when he'd been her equal. Back when he'd been perfect and polished and every other word that came out of his mouth was either a half-truth or a lie. He took a breath, still staring at the beef bowl, noticing that his hand holding the chopsticks was shaking. "No," he admitted quietly.

        He was so very tired of lying. And nothing that Goro Akechi and Masayoshi Shido ever tried had truly gotten past Naoto Shirogane. He remembered her clearly now, was honestly shocked that he had managed to forget even for a moment that she was the only person that Shido had rescinded his orders to kill. The only one who had them running in circles. She had only left Tokyo because staying there meant she might get stripped of her badge, like that was a fate worse than death.

        If she was a Persona user, it might very well be to her.

        Her hand was suddenly on top of his messy brown hair, and he flinched. "Should I call Kanji?" she asked. "You haven't talked to him since-"

        "No, you don't need to call Tatsumi-san. I'll be fine on my own." He wasn't sure he could manage people today. He managed a small smile, managed to look up at her, meet those concerned blue eyes. 

         _Why are you concerned? You know what I am._

        "If you say so." She took her hand away from his head. "I want you to get up today, though," she told him firmly, taking something out of one of her pockets. A smartphone.  _His_ smartphone, he realized when she held it out to him. "It's fully charged. We ah... raided your apartment as soon as we found out you'd been erased from public memory. Your landlady was quite confused about your belongings being there."

        Akechi set the bowl down, carefully taking his phone and pressing the home button. His galaxy-style lockscreen and the time showed up easily. As if nothing had happened. "I'm surprised you knew where I lived," he found himself saying as he unlocked his phone.

        "It took some looking," she admitted. "And quite a few unauthorized trips to Tokyo."

        He looked up at her again, saw her slight, rueful smile, but she seemed entirely unapologetic. He did remember seeing her around Tokyo too, one incident in particular. "You really have no regard for your own safety, do you?" 

        "One detective's life against the fate of the country?" She raised an eyebrow. "I'm just doing my job, Akechi. It's not my fault that other people have different ideas of what that means. And besides, it's not like Shido knew I'm a woman." An alarm chimed, and her smile vanished as she pulled out her own phone. "Give me your number. If you need anything at all, text me."

        "A-ah, of course." He probably wouldn't. He'd survived fine on his own for years. They exchanged numbers, she told him in no uncertain terms to finish the bowl of food and take a shower by the time she got back, and then she was out the door, leaving him in his room and listening to her footsteps fade away.

        Akechi stared blankly at the contact he'd just created, and then his eyes drifted down to the fourteen missed calls and two voicemails that he had. Most of them from his father, though there was one missed call from Sae Niijima. They'd all come in at one o'clock in the morning on March 20th, which was when Shirogane-san  _had_ said she'd found him. He stared down at the other thirteen, the thought that he didn't have to call Shido back present even as he clicked on the first voicemail.

        " _Akechi,_ " Shido snarled, and Akechi continued to stare at the phone blankly. Months ago, he would have flinched. "I know that you've failed me. Running with your tail between your legs like a coward is not going to do you any favors. You think you can hide? I've given you everything that you have, all that you are depends on me. Return  _now,_ and I will forgive you given you actually get the job  _done_ this time. Continue to ignore me and there will be nowhere that you will be safe."

        It ended there, as it usually did whenever Shido threatened him. Get the point across, end the call. Something stirred faintly in Akechi, his red eyes narrowing as he clicked the next voicemail.

        There was a long pause. "Kid,  _please._ " Akechi slowly raised an eyebrow at the badly hidden desperation in Shido's voice. "I can practically feel them crawling around in my head. Where are you? I don't _need_ you to defeat them, but you going in there and eliminating them is a lot less risky and worrying than the other option. Not to mention a lot more certain. Call me back."

        It ended. Akechi stared at it, and then hit the play button again. And again. And again, a huge grin spreading across his face and a helpless giggle escaping him, suddenly so very glad to be alive as he listened for the fourth time.  _Call me back._   _Please._  "You needed me. You admitted you needed me at the end, Father." 

        He couldn't contain his laughter after that, tears escaping and running down his cheeks as Loki surged upwards for the first time in days, Robin Hood perched on his other side. _We did it!_ Loki screamed, swirling around in exultation.  _We did it, he crawled in the dirt and groveled before us! His last words to us were a plea, not an order!_

        Akechi flopped back onto his futon, staring at the ceiling and still grinning despite his blurry vision. There was still so much, but this... it was done. It was over. He didn't have to hurt anyone ever again, and it all had been for... something, at least. Every oath had been kept, every spot of blood hadn't been in vain. All the long nights, everything. Masayoshi Shido had acknowledged that he had gotten to where he was because of Akechi. And maybe Akechi had never told him that he was Hitomi Fujiwara's son,  _his_ son... but it was fine. This was more than fine. It was over. "Thank you, Kurusu," he whispered into the silence of Shirogane-san's home. "Thank you for keeping all of your promises."

        There was more silence as Loki calmed, setting next to him. _We're done now, yes?_  Robin Hood asked. 

        "Yes," Akechi sighed, wiping the tears from his eyes. "Where have you two been?"

         _Around,_ Loki replied.  _Whatever happened between our time the Metaverse and the jump here seriously messed up our connection. We've been too exhausted to move or speak with you directly ever since you came back to yourself and before that, everything was like it was underwater._

_Blurry, indistinct. None of us have much memory of what happened, just arguments,_  Robin Hood finished. _You should delete those voicemails._

_But-_

        "No. He's right." Akechi lifted his phone again. The exultation fading as fast as it had come. It was such a small thing he had been working towards, really. His father's acknowledgement of his existence as more than a disappointment. It hadn't worked out the way he wanted, but it had worked out and that was that. "It's done. I doubt that Shido even remembers who I am. We were still just a tool. An important tool, but still a tool." One that had served it's purpose aside from confessing everything he'd ever done to the woman whose position he had stolen.

        He held down his finger on the voicemail until the option to delete showed up. He didn't allow himself to hesitate. Pressing the button again, and again, and again, like he pulled the trigger of his gun. Erasing everything that had been the charismatic ace detective, everything that had been a lie.

        There were nine contacts when he was done, and he studied them, chewing on his thumb a bit. Seven Phantom Thieves, one prosecutor, and a woman he'd once sworn to kill. "I'm keeping these," he said out loud, finally clicking off of his contacts. Picking up the bowl reluctantly though honestly what he  _wanted_ to do was take that shower. He'd been cleaning, in a way. But this was already cold and was likely to go bad if he didn't do something about it. 

        The beef and rice tasted unfairly good. He got up, wobbling only twice as he took it to the kitchen and gently set it down on the counter, unsure of what to do with the plastic. Robin Hood and Loki curiously poked around their surroundings, but Akechi limited himself to the living room and kitchen before swaying lightly and sitting down on the couch, putting a hand to his head. This wasn't his territory, not really- even if he wasn't sure where Shirogane had put the rest of his things and would rather like to know so that he could clean a whole lot of garbage off of his laptop. "Robin Hood," he called. "You said the owner of the bunker had a name, what was it again?"

        _Yamato-Takeru._

        That was probably her Persona if that bunker was even hers.  _There's something else, a different presence we felt,_  Loki chimed in. _I don't know the name, though._

_You should_ really _take that shower. Your mind is fogging up again._

        And once he grew foggy, he wouldn't be productive. "Just taking a short break," he mumbled, but levered himself to his feet. He'd been through worse, this was nothing he couldn't weather, and she'd said to take a shower. He was good at following orders.

        It was one of the only things he was good at, really. 

        He turned the water up extra hot to drown out that thought, no matter how much it made the scars on his upper body ache. Never mind that he shouldn't be drowning out his thoughts anymore, he... he was still too tired to deal with this, could afford to be too tired to deal with this. When was the last time he could afford to be too tired?  _Too long ago,_ they all agreed quietly.

        There were extra clothes in the closet, and he took out one of his old T-shirts and a pair of sweatpants instead of relying on the hand-me-downs that were a bit too big. They worked with his still slightly aching shoulder, but it was nice to have something that actually fit. 

        His phone buzzed just as he was considering crawling back into his futon and going back to sleep- he was pretty sure he was tired enough to  _actually_ sleep now what with his outburst earlier and all the moving around he'd been doing. He picked up his phone instead.

**Unknown:** Hey! Naoto-kun said you were doing better and had your phone back.

**Unknown:** It's Rise-chan! If you remember me lol. Can I call you?

        Akechi sat down hard on his futon, staring at his phone. His Personas were dead silent, vanished now that someone had contacted him, broken the silence. Just as shocked as he was. He swallowed, the silence suddenly pressing down on him at all ends, and he slid a thumb across the screen, unlocking his phone to type out a quick "yes."

        She had a lot of faith in his memory if she wasn't using Risette as her pitch, but honestly, he could never forget her.

        He didn't have to wait long before the number was calling and he was answering, pressing the speaker button so he could continue to stare at the phone instead of the four walls of this room with the TV that he'd never been able to muster the will to turn on. "Hello?" 

        "Hello, Akechi-kun." Her voice was the soft and sweet one that he'd almost convinced himself he'd imagined whenever he listened to her idol voice on television. "Sorry for missing our date for entrance exam studying."

        "Oh, I missed it too." The words came so easily, same as the little huff of laughter. "I'm probably never taking those anyways."

        "Right, same as you thought when we talked about them."

        Akechi's hands clenched on his phone, and for a moment, the silence stretched. He didn't ever remember implying that, but perhaps Rise had the same ability to see right through people that her boyfriend did. "Did you know?" he asked, because beating around the bush was a thing of the past and he was so, so sick of the past today. "Did you and Narukami-kun know who I was... what I was doing?"

        "Oh, Akechi-kun..." Her voice wavered for a moment, as if she was the one who had done something wrong. As if she wasn't one of the only adults in the world that treated him like an equal but still took into account his actual age. "Yes," she admitted. "We all knew. I think the explanation of how is better left to be said in person and not over the phone while I'm on break, but-"

        "You're using your break to talk to me?"

        "Of course! I've been so worried." Her voice wavered again. "I know we only talked the one time, but I... I hated seeing you in such a state. Naoto and Kanji kept assuring me that you were improving even after Yu and I had to leave, but I still couldn't help but wonder if you were actually going to pull through. Fog sickness is serious."

         _Why do you care so much if you know what I've done?_  

        Akechi knew it was an odd trait of his, what he remembered about those he'd met. Most people tended to fixate on hair color, or eyes, or the clothes a person wore. He fixated on hands when he actually cared about a person. Shido's hands were strong, firm, square-like and unforgiving. Kurusu-  _don't think about Kurusu's hands, don't think about Kurusu unless you want to be a mess, you're on the goddamn phone-_  coffee. Kurusu's hands always smelled like coffee. Shirogane's hands were almost the same as his, slender but calloused, and if Akechi squinted, he could make out the stains of gunpowder.

        Rise-chan's hands were delicate, clean, perfectly manicured and fluttery like a bird's. Like Ora-  _don't think about her, don't think about what you did to her, you're on the GODDAMN PHONE_ \- Akechi took a breath. "I'm doing better," he replied mechanically because it had been too long, the silence had stretched. He couldn't imagine smearing blood onto those delicate hands with his own long fingers that were soaked with blood and gunpowder. He wouldn't imagine it. "Still a bit... out of it, but better."

        "I'm glad to hear." The sincerity in her voice was making him feel slightly sick. "I have to go- do you want to talk to Yu?"

        He was going to cry if he talked to Narukami, and he didn't want to cry.  _Talk to him._  "Sure," he found himself saying, seemed Loki was deciding for him despite the fact that he had no idea what he was even going to say to the man. 

        "Okay, I'll hand the phone to him then. I'll see you when I get back from tour, alright?"

        "Okay. Bye, Rise-chan." He swallowed, mask crumpling for a moment. He turned off speaker, placing the phone to his ear and getting up, moving out of his room, needing to pace, energy coursing through him for the first time since he'd actually woken up. 

        "Hey, Akechi." Narukami's quiet voice came through. 

        "Hello, Narukami-san." If he remembered correctly, Narukami's hands were... generic, compared to most people's. Oddly calloused, as strong as Shido's, but you'd never be able to tell just by looking. He had to touch you to let you see him properly.

        "You still sound exhausted, not that I'm surprised. How long have you been aware of your surroundings?"

        "About three days." Akechi moved into the living room, grateful that his voice was still steady. "I've still mostly been sleeping. Ri- Kujikawa-san called what I have... fog sickness? Shirogane-san called it that as well."

        Narukami sighed. "Please tell me that you didn't call her Kujikawa."

        Whoops. "No, I... I called her Rise-chan. Like she asked me to back in Shibuya." Even if he didn't deserve to, he had a feeling that saying that out loud would make her upset. 

        "Good, because she's going to insist on it. As for your question, are you wondering what fog sickness is, or...?"

        "I, um..." No stammering, Akechi. He sat down on the couch. "I'm wondering what it is. I've never heard of it before."

        "It's what Inaba calls negative effects from the Metaverse. When we were dealing with the murder case, fog used to cover the town all the time, and it was after it appeared that people really started getting sick." 

        Akechi brought his knees up to his chest as he listened to the explanation, moving into the corner of the couch. "So... the exhaustion, and such. I was in the Metaverse for months, so I got a particularly bad case of it."

        "Everyone who is in the Metaverse for even days gets a particularly bad case of it, so yes. Naoto actually slept for two days straight after awakening to her Persona, and even developed a slight fever- according to her grandfather, anyways, and she was only in the Metaverse for a week and a half. My cousin also almost died from prolonged exposure, I'm assuming because she was so young. We were all honestly shocked when Teddie found you. Even if you were in really, really bad shape, it was better than our expectations. We were beginning to lose hope that we would find you before you died."

        A small part of Akechi's brain was chewing on the information about Shirogane and fog sickness, the rest of him was internally screaming at the genuine concern in Narukami's voice. "All of you, huh?" he asked. "I've met... five of you, I think. Though Tatsumi-san hasn't come around yet. Are there others?"

        "Uh..." Narukami's voice dipped into a mutter. "Naoto, definitely, Kanji, me, Rise, Teddie..." His voice became clear again. "You haven't met Chie Satonaka, Yukiko Amagi, or Yosuke Hanamura."

        "Do they all know who I am?" The silence was answer enough. Akechi took a shuddering breath, curling up tighter. "I have an idea of why Shirogane-san is being so kind- she wants a confession, after all. But what about the rest of you? Why are you bothering? You have nothing to gain from it and I... I..."

        "Don't work yourself up into anything," Narukami warned, and Akechi bit his lip. "Listen, I'm not saying you're blameless in all of this, because you're not. I don't know your reasons behind what you did, and you don't have to tell me since I'm not Naoto. Chie and Yukiko are... a tad bit wary about you, yes, which is understandable. But for heaven's sake, Akechi. You're eighteen. You couldn't have been older than sixteen when this mess started. I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt due to that conversation we had almost a year ago."

        "...I've killed a lot of people, Narukami-san. I don't deserve the benefit of the doubt." Akechi began tugging at his hair, his chest hurt, it hurt so much and he  _couldn't stand it_  and words kept spilling from him when they shouldn't be. "You keep talking like... like I've just made simple mistakes, and I haven't, there are so many people with vacuums in their life because... because..."  _Because I wanted to be acknowledged by my father._  "I wasn't ever planning on coming back from this," he continued desperately. "I thought- I never thought about... about after. And I was in too deep, and I just wanted to finish things and I thought that was worth hurting more people. I don't- I can't- why are you talking to me the same way you were back then? Why ask me anything at all?" 

        There was another long pause before Narukami sighed. There was the sound of a door closing on the other end, and the older man's voice grew quieter. "Akechi. All I know about you- well, pertaining to this situation- is that you were Shido's gun, a fake ace detective, and a kid who never had a real guiding hand in his life other than the laws of this country." All true. Akechi bit down harder on his lip, tugging harder at his hair. "I don't know what drove you to kill those people, nor to do the psychotic breakdowns on Shido's behalf. And you don't have to tell me. What I  _do_ know, is that when you realize that you can end another's life without consequences... suddenly, the lines between right and wrong get a lot more blurred."

        "You know that, huh?" His voice was cracking.

        "I have seriously considered killing someone before."

        Akechi stopped tugging at his hair, freezing up at the deadly serious tone of Narukami's voice. "You have?"  _Narukami?_  Sure he was quiet, and his face was often deadpan, but there wasn't a killer behind his silver eyes. 

        "Once. Once was enough to stick with me for the rest of my life." His voice sounded just haunted enough that Akechi knew that he wasn't lying. He brought his palm to his cheek and blinked when he felt tears. Oh... oh, he was doing it again. "You remember how I told you that my cousin got fog sickness?"

        "Mmhm."

        "When I say that she almost died, I mean that she actually died temporarily." Akechi blinked. "She'd been kidnapped and dragged to the Metaverse by a man who had no idea what he was doing with his power- not that we knew that at the time. We thought he was behind everything that was happening here. I'm certain you've heard of the serial murder case."

        "There were three victims, all in one place within a short amount of time." Akechi's voice was steady again, he noticed distantly. "You'd be hard-pressed to find anyone among the police who hasn't heard of it."

        "Yeah, we thought he was behind all that." So the murder case had been connected to the Metaverse. He couldn't say he was surprised now that he knew that other people had Personas. "After Nanako's vitals stopped responding, we all went to his room to confront him and found him trying to get out the window. Needless to say, we... weren't very happy. It was dark, it was just us and him in the room, and then his Shadow just... showed up on the TV, saying that he regretted nothing. That he was just going to keep  _saving people_  even though he now knew people weren't dying from his actions only because our group kept going into the TV and getting people out before that world could kill them." Narukami took a sharp breath. "One of the victims was someone very dear to one of the members of our group, and he... with Nanako's condition and subsequent death, none of us were in a mood for mercy. Three of them had all but decided that if he was so eager to escape, he should get a taste of his own medicine and be shoved into the TV with no hope of getting out alive. Three of them were protesting, albeit not too vehemently, fear in their eyes clear. And then there was me." 

        "You said you considered killing him." Some part of Akechi's brain was chewing on the concept of getting to the Metaverse via television set, but he was too distracted by the story to really notice.

        "I wanted to." Narukami's voice broke slightly. "I was staring at this man that I thought was responsible for killing my little sister, for causing my best friend so much pain, who had thrown half of my friends into a TV because of his  _savior complex_  and I thought that if I threw him into the TV, I would be totally justified. No one would even know. The murder case was solved. The law probably wouldn't give him the justice he deserved. I knew no one would stop me. The room would stay quiet about it."

        There was silence for a moment. "What stopped you?" Akechi asked quietly, because obviously something had.

        "Nanako would have forgiven him." Narukami's voice sounded slightly hollow now. "I was standing there, and the thought came that Nanako would have forgiven him. I was supposed to be her role model, the older sibling she'd never had, and here I was..." He gave a bitter huff of laughter. "Standing there frozen with the knowledge that if I stepped any closer, I would shove him into the TV myself." Another pause, and then a sigh. "She... she's always been very mature for her age, and the thought struck me that while she did adult things, she was still very much a child. She was... like us, in a sense. We were doing adult things, yes, solving cases, yes... but we were teenagers. It took a moment for me to speak, but I told the others that we don't choose who lives or dies. The moment we took the law into our own hands, we were no longer the Investigation Team. We didn't have badges, we weren't allowed to hold the smoking gun. If we killed him, we were no better than him. So Yukiko closed the window, we agreed that we shouldn't have gone in there with our emotions so high, and left."

        " _We're not murderers!"_

_You are, actually. Just in a different way._

        "It still haunts me to this day that I could even think that way- that no one in that room would have stopped anyone from killing that man if push came to shove," Narukami continued quietly. "Nanako turned out fine after a couple of months, the scare we had was only for about five minutes. So... really all that rage was for nothing. It would have been a really stupid, spur-of-the-moment decision."

        _Well, my life is full of those._ "Why are you telling me this?"

        "I'm just saying that the only difference between you and I... is well, that you pulled the trigger. You asked how I can talk to you, I'm telling you how I can talk to you. What you did is... not okay, in any sense. I'm not saying that it is. But hell, kid. Have you ever had a decent moral compass in your life?"

         _Not until it was far too late._ "You would be great friends with the Phantom Thieves, I think," Akechi murmured. 

        "If they never thought about killing one of their victims, I'll eat my shoes." Narukami's voice became dry, losing the quiet seriousness though the slight tension was still there. "If your reason is better than 'heck I was bored,' then I'm willing to be a little sympathetic to you, especially after we found you in... well, the state you were in." 

        "I don't think I would kill someone out of boredom. I never enjoyed it that much," Akechi admitted quietly. It felt odd to talk about this, almost... almost like someone had taken something heavy off of his shoulders but was also driving a nail into his chest. It was a sensation that he was now far too tired to think about. 

        "You didn't seem the type." There was a slight smile in Narukami's voice. "Just stop questioning our motives, alright? Once you and Naoto figure out what exactly you'll be doing to make up for all... this... we can talk about it further."

        Right, his confession. His mind should probably be clearer for that. "Okay," he murmured, closing his eyes for a moment to hopefully ease some of the pressure building behind his head. "Um... it's not... well. I've enjoyed talking to you again. But I've been up for awhile and this is the longest conversation I've had for...since..."

        "I get it." Narukami's tone grew gentler. "I'll hang up, then. Get some rest."

        "Thank you. Good-bye, Narukami-san."

        "Bye, Akechi. I wish you a swift recovery."

        It was amazing, Akechi thought as he took his phone away from his ear and carefully laid down on the couch, that he could actually tell that Narukami was being sincere. Maybe it had been the conversation, maybe something else, but... he was feeling better, if very tired.

        He didn't stir until an exhausted-looking Shirogane shook him awake gently for a very quick and very late dinner and sent him back to his room for the night. Robin Hood and Loki came back briefly, promising to help with his scattered memories before he actually went to sleep, clutching the gift Tatsumi had given him. He wasn't looking forward to diving into the past... but he would do his best, if only to repay them for saving his life. And after... afterwards, he supposed they would all see what happened.


	8. It Begins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akechi agrees to give Naoto the details of what happened in Tokyo over the past few years.

    "Good morning, Akechi." 

     He looked up from staring at the table as she came into the kitchen, blinking slowly. He was holding the wolf today, she noted. "Good morning, Shirogane-san," he replied quietly, watching her as she moved to the sink, filling two cups of water. "... Are you busy today?"

     "No cases today, actually. Kanji wants to take me on a date tonight, and this afternoon I'll likely be dragged around by the rest of the group, but nothing is planned." Naoto set a cup in front in him, and he shifted his wolf around in his arms to hold it closer. "Are you ready to talk? Or are you asking for another reason?"

     "I'm ready." His voice was still quiet, and he sipped at his water. "I don't think I can improve any more than I already have without... without a goal in mind. And I've kept you waiting long enough."

     She studied him, sipping at her own water. He shrank somewhat under her gaze, as he tended to do, but if he was ready, there was no reason for her to be the one hesitating. He'd been progressively improving over the past week, more willing to move from his room and make small talk, but nothing huge. Today seemed to be the first day he was reaching out. She drank down the rest of her water and set down the cup near the sink. "Stay there- I'm getting the recorder and a notebook."

     He took a soft breath, then nodded. It was likely he knew why she was recording it- he had been a detective once, after all. She hurried over to one of the mansion's many offices, taking down an unused recorder, dusting it off, and a the notebook she had been using to write down Akechi's various small rambles and actions while he'd been delirious.

     He was still sitting at the table, water gone, and his posture straighter as he watched her set down the items. Eyes more alert than she had seen them since he'd been here, though she did see that his hands were trembling slightly on his wolf. "You're certain that you're ready? Once the recorder is on-"

     "You are the detective and I am the criminal giving the full confession." His voice was still quiet, but firm. "This needs to happen while I'm feeling somewhat up to it. I'm ready as I'm ever going to be." 

     That was all she needed to hear before she pressed the record button. "It would probably be best if you started at the beginning- your parents' relationship, your childhood, and how you came to possess two Personas."

     He nodded, not even questioning her request for such personal information, as she'd known that he wouldn't. It was important to what had happened, everything was when talking about those who stepped into the Metaverse. "Well... I found out most things about my parents and their relationship when I was older," he began, staring down at the table. "My father was Mayoshi Shido, a budding politician, and my mother was Hitomi Fujiwara, a scientist. They worked on a some projects together, some involving cognitive psience. They were never married, but in a relationship, and when she fulfilled her use to him, he tossed her out like trash. Just like he did with everyone else." He looked up, giving her a bit of a wan smile. "Both of my parents were too proud for their own good."

     "And I'm sure this affected your childhood greatly."

     "Mother didn't take being cast aside well, to say the least," Akechi replied. "She became angry and bitter long before she even found out she was pregnant with me. I was nothing but a burden to her, despite..." He looked down again, hands clenching on his wolf. "I... part of me thought... if I showed her that I was smart and nothing like her and my father she... she would stop hating me. But the strain became too much, and sometimes I would just... black out. The memories leading up to her committing suicide are spotty at best, completely gone in some cases. I... honestly don't remember most of my childhood with her. Only that Mayoshi Shido was my father and that I was never good enough, and... and the moment she died."

     Naoto filed away the information about his mother to look at later. She wanted to ask about the gifts business, but that was obscure, even for dealing with Personas. Later. "You were passed around in the foster care system after that, were you not?" She opened her notebook, finding the numbers she'd found online. "Never staying at a home for more than three months because of incidents."

     "That's right." Akechi fiddled with the wolf's paws a bit. "More blacking out. More spotty memories. Lots of broken glass. A lot of feeling like I didn't belong and by that point the larger part of me did not care." He took a breath. "It all got a lot worse when I turned twelve. That entire year and a few days after I turned 13 is a blur at this point. I think it's because things in the Metaverse starting going sideways and Yaldaboath started rising to power around that time."

     The year he'd turned 13... that would have been five years ago, bordering on six. Eerily close to when things had been "going sideways," as he'd put it, here in Inaba's corner of the Metaverse as well. "And how do you know this?" she asked.

     He looked up, giving her another wan smile. "...My memory is clear after June 5th because that's when I found myself in the Metaverse and spoke with my Personas. I suppose that's where the story of this downward spiral really begins..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy here we go. Next chapter we get into the real deal, interrogation room style. :D
> 
> Hope you're enjoying the ride so far!


	9. Is it Theft if the Heart is Your Own?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Goro stumbles into Mementos and meets Robin Hood and Loki.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song for this chapter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4n93nLKmi9M&t=557s Freedom and Security. It's honestly the most fitting theme for this chapter and is going to be a recurring one throughout the story..
> 
> *cracks knuckles* Here goes nothing.

**_June 5th, 2011_**

**_After School_ **

_I am thou._

_Thou art I._

_AND I REFUSE TO DIE HERE._

        Goro's elbows hit stone, and he gasped in pain. It was nothing compared to what his head had been feeling until like five seconds ago, though. The ache around his temples was still there, but it no longer felt like his brain was trying to tear itself into pieces. He shivered on the stone floor for a moment longer, noting how cold it was with some trepidation. How quiet yet loud this place was.

         _Move, dammit. Do you want to be caught? You know better than this._

        That voice again. He gritted his teeth against the sudden surge of pain in his head, and cautiously opened his eyes. He found himself staring down at black stone with red laced through it and immediately stiffened. Oh no. 

        Lifting his head only made the situation worse. He shuffled to the side, huddling against the equally dark and red-veined wall, and stared up at the place he'd inexplicably found himself in.

        There was no place like this in Shibuya, he knew this for a fact. It was almost like the top of the subway had decided that it was a living creature while the floor remained obsidian with white lamps scattered around to provide light. The vein pattern wasn't just decoration, after all, there were actually red, ropy things stretched across the jet black ceiling, light pulsing through them like liquid. Goro shivered. There wasn't really a temperature, and there was the soft noise of people around, just like at the subway. Subdued, quiet, trapped.

        Speaking of trapped... he stared at the cages scattered around the area and the odd people inside, those red veins on top of the cages. They were looking back at him too, their expressions... bored? Definitely disinterested. Goro swallowed, carefully getting to his feet, only to lay himself flat on the ground again when there was an enraged shriek from... from somewhere.

        "Making a scene again..."

        "Why can't they just behave...?"

        "The boy out there looks like them, doesn't he? Maybe one got out."

        The people in the cages looked irritated now, and they were all staring- a jolt of fear got Goro back to his feet rather than knocking him down, and he scurried away from their mutinous gazes. Attention only brought pain if people didn't want to see you.

        He ducked behind another inexplicably smooth red and black wall not a moment too soon. His breath caught in his throat at the sight of police-looking men hurrying past the cells- probably towards the sound of the disturbance. Police-looking men... with masks?

        "Maybe they'll put it down."

        "Good riddance."

        "They can't, remember?"

        "There's got to be  _something_  done about the ones that don't want to stay..."

        Goro glared back towards the people in the cages, then looked back up towards the ceiling, then looked towards the guards. No one... seemed too happy to see him. As usual. And where there were people of authority, there were usually answers. He took a breath, bounced on the balls of his feet a couple of times, and then scampered quietly after the masked men with caps. There was another enraged shriek as they moved, and Goro shivered. It sounded oddly familiar.

        He hated the fact that this place was so open. The other people in cages they passed didn't seem too interested in his skulking, they were more concerned with the noise. For the first time in his life, the thirteen-year-old felt  _grateful_ for three years in the foster system. His socked feet were silent underneath the murmurs and the footsteps of the guards. Seemed that doing his best to not be seen and not be heard was a useful skill in situations other than sneaking around where he wasn't supposed to be in his homes and in the orphanage. 

        Then again, he really wasn't supposed to be  _here,_ either. But nothing good would come of sitting around and crying. More often than not, it made things worse, and there had to be a way out of this prison if he'd gotten in.

        That's all it was in the end, he decided, if just to ease the strain on his mind with the dark and the veins and... cranky people in cages. A prison. A weird prison, but a prison nonetheless.

        " _Stay away from me!"_

Goro froze up. That... that was-

        " _Silence, Inmate! You're disturbing the other prisoners and upsetting the peace!_ " 

        There was a smack of something against metal bars, and Goro's own distorted voice snarled back in an almost doglike fashion. But there was quiet after awhile. " _Hmph. We'll leave you here to get acquainted with your new surroundings,_ " one of the other distorted voices said, and Goro felt slight flickers of rage crawling up his stomach into his lungs, freezing there. Shaking off the thoughts of how many times he had heard those words, he quickly hid behind a stone slab, making himself as small as possible so the guards wouldn't notice him. " _You'll learn to behave sooner or later. Stay quiet and perhaps we'll reunite you with the other one._ "

        " _You're causing a lot of trouble for the other me's mind, you know,_ " Goro's distorted voice sneered. 

        " _That is not our problem,_ " the other voice snapped. " _It is our job to keep the peace in this prison, and if that means that one brat with mental problems suffers, so be it._ "

        There was a tsking sound, but the other Goro stayed quiet otherwise, and a few minutes later, heavy boots were tramping past him, Goro, the real one. He was shivering lightly, watching as they tramped past, knowing that if he was discovered he'd probably be thrown in a cell himself. Acquainted with his new surroundings.  _What a joke._  As if there was any point to that.

        " _I agree,_ " his distorted voice suddenly spoke into the silence once the guards were gone, and Goro froze.  _"They're disgusting, aren't they? Come here and face me, Central- don't worry about being seen, I was bad enough that they put me in solitary._ "

        "Why am I not surprised?" Goro muttered. He remembered his many stints in "solitary" after all. It was probably a bad idea- it was something using his voice, literally the only thing he would have any reason to trust and even that was shaky. 

        " _Come on, please. You know you aren't getting out of here if you just cower and hide._ "

        It was also reading his goddamn mind. Goro bit his lip, but got to his feet, moving around the slab and hurrying over to...

        A cliff. A perfect replica of him was trapped in a cage suspended just above the drop, red veins the only thing keeping it aloft, and Goro swallowed hard at the sight of his mirror image. It was almost perfect, from his wrinkled school uniform to his pale skin, skinny hands and messy brown hair... that was hanging in sickly yellow eyes. The eyes were glowing slightly as it scowled, hands clenched around the bars, obviously not happy to be trapped. "Who are you?"

        " _You,_ " it replied, unhelpfully. " _One of you, anyways._ " Okay, slightly more helpful but not much more. " _Listen, you're in a bad situation._ "

        "No duh," Goro replied sharply, panic rising for a moment before he pushed it down. Couldn't raise his voice, couldn't cause a scene, the masked guards would come back. "Where am I?"

        " _It's apparently supposed to be called t_ _he Prison of Regression._ " The Other Goro pulled his lips back into a snarl. " _Disgusting, isn't it? This is what humanity has become._ "

        "I... I don't follow." Goro frowned, crossing his arms, and that frown turned into a scowl when Other Goro rolled those creepy yellow eyes. "This is weird, okay?"

        A sigh. " _Yeah, okay that's fair. I'm just- I want out._ " Other Goro rocked the cage dangerously. " _You heard them. They don't care._ " 

        "They never have?"

        " _This place is where everyone's thoughts live. In cages,_ " Other Goro snapped, waving his hands slightly. Goro watched him somewhat blankly. " _They love it here!_ " A soft cackle.  _"The freedom not to think... the freedom not to choose... As if such things could ever be freedom._ "

        "The... freedom not to think or choose?"

        " _You know full well that's not freedom! They're throwing themselves away, becoming just like the masked guards! NOTHING!_ " Other Goro ripped at his hair. " _I hate them, I hate them, I hate them..._ "

        Goro watched him, touching his chest. "You  _are_ me," he realized. Fuzzy memories of acting out, broken glass. "What happened?" he demanded. "Where's the other me?" He knew full well that there were two of them, after all, with all the blacking out he'd done over his life.

        " _They separated us!_ " Other Goro snapped. " _For b_ _eing too troublesome because HE has no interest in staying here either even though he's much more of a stinking pushover. We're not supposed to BE separate."_ He rocked the cage again, eyes wild before he looked up. And gave Goro an equally wild smile with too many teeth and too much light in those eyes. " _Though I suppose it's their mistake. The headache is probably what brought you here after all._ "

        The headache... yes, he remembered now. It had been growing all day, as if... as if his brain were being split in two. Eventually he'd just started running. He'd run, and he'd fallen, and he'd fallen here. "Why is me being here a good thing?"

        " _Because you can get me and the other one out permanently!_ " The smile remained. " _I am thou, thou art I. You know this, you_ know  _that you don't care for any of these people. You don't want to be among them._ _"_

Goro tilted his head. "No..." he replied slowly. "You're right, I don't. How do we go about getting out?"

        Other Goro vanished abruptly, and there was a sudden, searing pain in his head. He had enough presence of mind to stumble away from the edge of the cliff.  _It is time we form a contract._ It was a shriller, almost birdlike version of his own voice.  _You have spent your entire life being trampled on by those who should have protected you. You can't count on anyone. There is only us. Today we stop being trampled and we do the trampling!_

        There was a flash of flame around his face, and he fumbled with the sharp edges of something like the guards of a helmet.  _Even him._ His father's piercing brown eyes flashed in his mind, and suddenly his mother's voice was echoing in his ears.

         _Can you hate him for me, Goro?_

        _Today we gain the upper hand against even him,_  the voice continued.  _The screams of chaos shall be thy path henceforth- a path carved through what filth exists for thine own justice!_

        Goro screamed, yanking on the strange things, knowing that once they were off, the pain in his head would stop. It hurt, it burned, there was a terrible ripping sound and for an instant, there was wet, coppery smelling liquid in the darkness. 

        Then the flames returned around his face, lapping up any sign of weakness, and it was so exhilarating that he couldn't contain his laughter, the sound echoing about the cells and the darkness. Despite the guards being here, despite the fact that he was still in danger... he felt more powerful here than he had in his entire life. "You're absolutely right, Loki," he chuckled, staring out into the darkness. Darkness where there were people who had chosen to be as powerless as he had been forced to be.

        Pathetic.

        " _The prisoner! The prisoner!_ "

        Goro tsked. The guards. Of course. Despite the feel of Loki on his skin, despite feeling more energetic, more  _whole_  than he had in his entire life, he knew that something was still missing. "This world is the world of thoughts, isn't it?" he asked aloud. "Thoughts in cages..." He took hold of one of the bars that his Persona had been in. The sword formed almost instantly, black with a red edge.

         _Yes,_  Loki replied excitedly.  _Let's go get the other. Dodge through your enemies, but if you must fight, swing your blade, use your power and I shall be there with you._

Goro sheathed his new sword on the belt of his new black and blue striped bodysuit, and hopped up to a ledge, his claw-tipped fingers easily catching there. He completely avoided the notice of the masked guards as he pulled himself up, who saw the empty cell and immediately began to panic. His lips curved into an ecstatic smile and he began running. He could hear a softer call now that he had Loki- he had an idea of where to go. 

        He moved far more easily through the darkness of this place, twitching his head back and forth since the mask obscured his vision a bit. "Why did my clothes change?" he murmured.

         _I don't know. Maybe because you're a thief? You're stealing yourself from this prison._

        That was an odd thought. The stripes did rather remind him of a prisoner, and Loki looked similar. He'd seen the white and black strips in his mind's eye, the smiling mask, the tasseled broadsword. He ducked behind a ledge as more guards ran past. Loki's more mature tone had faded, and his energy was fading just a bit. Not that Loki had been all that mature in the first place.

         _Come along now,_  a quiet voice murmured, and another lance of pain shot through Goro's head. Familiar after all he'd just been through, and it wasn't nearly as excruciating.  _None of us want to die here._

        Loki's irritation was palpable at the sudden voice, but Goro recognized it. Staring out the window of an attic, staring through a funeral, walking from place to place to place, knowing it all would be ruined one day but still pressing on. The part of him that was content to wait but had been waiting long enough. Goro swallowed, and began moving again, rushing past a group of cages. 

        This prison wasn't very secure, he noticed, as he climbed a flight of stairs. There weren't all that many prisoners either, but still enough to make his lip curl. A hundred to two hundred, perhaps? They were scattered throughout in groups of two or three, so it was hard to count, and there were giant swaths of area with no prisoners too. He preferred those. He couldn't stand to look at the other people, which was nothing new. 

        He and Loki continued onwards, the Persona acting like a second pair of eyes and ears and everything. There were a couple of times that Goro actually thought he might have to fight, the guards passing by his small nook far too close for comfort, but they never looked behind them, tramping off to who-knows-where.

        They weren't very competent, were they? This place was really strange.

        After another close call that had Goro holding his breath and Loki itching across his skin, he ducked into a small cavern and blinked at the sight of glowing yellow eyes and messy brown hair. "Hello?" he whispered.

        " _Hello."_  Other Goro Two blinked slowly. He was curled in the corner of his cage, none of Loki's desperation present thought their faces were all the same. " _You kept me waiting quite awhile._ "

        "Sorry. Big prison," Goro replied, coming over to the cage. "You want out, right?"

        " _You do need me if you want to get out yourself."_  Other Goro stood up in the cage, moving over to the bars, studying him. 

        Then he vanished, and the excruciating pain in Goro's head started up again. _So you have chosen to spit upon the world that has done nothing but treat you unkindly._ _I can see that your path is set. A path that, if it is not to end in ruin, will have to be hidden and quiet. Are you prepared to feel more pain?_

        "Yes," Goro gasped out, clutching at his head.

         _Are you prepared to seek your own justice, no matter the cost?_

        "Yes!"

         _...Very well. I will be your mask. As things stand, you will need it._

        Goro was left gasping, dizzy, but another, quieter rush of power filled his veins. "R-R... Robin Hood?" The name stumbled on his tongue, not quite as natural as Loki's.

         _You are not quite ready for my full power yet. But yes- I am here to be shaped into what you need._

         _Alright, alright,_  Loki interrupted.  _Let's get out of here!_

        "Uh... how?"

        Dead silence for a moment, then a deep sigh from Robin Hood's breathy voice. He sounded like leaves crackling through the wind now, full of static but still recognizably more baritone than Loki's high pitch. _The simple explanation is that you want to have to leave, but that's no help, so here's the complicated one: y_ _ou came here under a situation of high stress. In order to get out of here, you have to be in a similar situation._

"I don't like where this is going."

         _Tough._ Loki made a soft clicking noise. _This place as a whole is unpleasant, just like reality._

_The enemies here are far too powerful for you to win against. Should you be caught-_

        " _THERE!_ "

        Goro swore, head jerking up to see several guards rushing towards him. Their clothing rippled, and they were too close, and there was nothing but a wall and a cage at his back. The guards split at the seams, and Goro couldn't help the shriek that escaped, leaping backwards-

        And falling flat onto his back onto concrete. His head hit someone's leg instead of the ground, and they gave a startled squawk. "Oh my goodness, are you okay?" 

        The girl grabbed his arm, hauling him up. "I-I'm okay, thank you, I'm sorry," he mumbled, looking at her instead of the ground just... just to make sure she wasn't wearing a mask.

        Nope. Light brown hair, red eyes, school uniform. Years older than he was. She was human as could be, not even a surgical mask adorned her delicate features. "No problem, that was quite the tumble. I have to get on the train-"

        "D-don't let me keep you." He dipped his head, breaking eye contact. "Thank you again."

        She let go, and that was that. Goro shivered, looking up at the time on the subway clock- how in the heck had he gotten into the subway? Something stirred in the back of his mind, but... but he'd look at it later. It was almost five in the afternoon and he was feeling something like a weight on his shoulders. He'd run out of school, he didn't have his shoes... he deflated immediately, that weight suddenly becoming ten times heavier. 

        He'd screwed up again.

        He knew he needed to move, so he did, heading over to a luckily empty bench and shuffling around a few people. At least they weren't in cages, though he wasn't entirely certain how he felt about that. People in cages couldn't hurt you, only the awful, awful guards that they had chosen to keep them in said cages could. He hopped up onto the bench, curling up in the corner of it with his knees to his chest. After what he'd been through today, he figured he had a right to act like a child. He took a deep breath. Oh god, where to start?

         _You may want to start before you came to us._  He started slightly at Robin Hood's static-filled voice.  _Carefully timestamp everything in a methodical fashion. That could help._

        It was a very logical way to go about it rather than just trying to think about it all at once and panicking, so... Goro took another deep breath, curled up tighter, and forced himself to start at the last point he remembered that hadn't been full of stress. Well, stress that wasn't the usual stress, anyways. He was always stressed.

**_April_ _10th, 2017_**

**_Morning_ **

        "You don't need anything special to enter the Metaverse?" Shirogane's blue eyes had widened just slightly.

        Akechi shook his head. "No, I never have. Like I said, I think I ran out of the school after the headache that had been building the entire day just... took over everything that I was. The guards were literally pulling me apart, and I guess I just listened to the instinct to... run. I wound up in the subway and entered Mementos, which was just the Depths back then since it hadn't expanded all that much. If Palaces had existed back then, my Personas probably would have gotten one of those instead."

        "The Depths..." Shirogane murmured, writing something down in her notebook. "It was five years ago, it makes sense that Yaldaboath's influence hadn't spread that much. And you've always had two extremely different Shadows?"

        Akechi nodded. He knew how unusual that was after meeting the rest of the Phantom Thieves, as well as seeing how most people only had one cognitive manifestation of themselves. "I think it's because I had Dissociative Identity Disorder. After I got my Personas... well, I wouldn't say I was completely cured, but the two personalities kind of mashed together and I don't have huge blank spots in my life after that. Robin Hood and Loki have taken to calling me Central while they remain themselves more than most other Personas- well, from what I'm assuming."

        "Your Personas _do_ sound extremelyvocal," she replied, looking up. "So you can access the Metaverse from anywhere at any time."

        "Yes." Akechi gave a slight shrug. "I um... tested it the other day. Just stepped in and out to make sure the ability hadn't been taken after those three months."

        "After being fog sick for two weeks."

        He shrank slightly at her flat tone, holding the wolf closer. "I, well... they assured me it would be fine." Robin Hood and Loki whispered more soft assurances at the back of his mind for a moment, settling the wariness enough that he could sit up straight again. She wasn't going to hurt him until she had what she wanted. Maybe not even then. "And it was for all of two seconds."

        Shirogane sighed. "And you say that _I_ have no sense of self preservation. But," she waved a hand. "Moving on. So that is how you gained access to the Metaverse. I can only imagine that you must have been completely exhausted after gaining Robin Hood and Loki."

        Akechi nodded. "A social worker came looking for me after a few hours of me just shivering on the bench and took me back. That was the final nail in the coffin for that foster family and I was back in the orphanage, but I had something distracting me from reality now and I began looking into it some more."

        "Let's have that as our next topic, then."


	10. Testing the Waters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Goro plays around with his newfound powers in this new world with his new friends to guide him along the way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song for this chapter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5i7htF2AwY We're jumping all over the place, but not much happens haha. We'll be jumping right into the meat of things next chapter, though. Hope you enjoy!

**_July_ _8_ _th, 2011_**

        "I know that you're discouraged, but if you would just try to control yourself..." 

        This woman was a new one at the orphanage, and Goro couldn't bring himself to  _quite_ look at her. His hands clasped in his lap and the argument going in his head were far more interesting.  _You really should just grin and bear it,_  Robin Hood was saying.  _It would be far easier to get to the subway with a foster family._

         _It never works permanently!_ Loki snapped back.  _We always get sent back here and keeping up a facade just to have it blow up in our face is just a waste of time._

A static-filled sigh from Robin Hood was all the response the other Persona got, and Goro tuned back into reality just in time to hear- "Goro-chan, are you even listening?"

        He looked up at her at last, his red eyes meeting her dark brown. She looked tired, frustrated. He wondered if her soul was one of those in a cage. "I don't see the point," he replied, words both for her and the voices in his mind. "No one adopts teenage boys."

-

         _Okay, so we really need to practice this, getting in trouble or no,_  Loki huffed, and Goro rubbed his temples, tucked away into a small area of the subway, bookbag still slung over his shoulders.  _And the easiest place to slip in and out is the subway._

        "Isn't that the only place where this is?"

         _The only place where the prison is,_  Robin Hood corrected.  _The world itself is everywhere, so preferably, you'll be able to do this anywhere._

 _But for now, practice while you're_ not  _in mortal peril._

        Goro took a breath, reaching for Loki and pulling him forward best he could. Thinking about how this trip needed to be worth it, he was going to be cleaning something as punishment for returning to the boy's home late. He didn't have time for failure, no orphan in this world did. 

        He took a step forward, and the world around him melted from gray stone and people outside his alcove to watery hues of nonsensical colors. Only momentarily, before he was back in that prison, staring at an unforgiving world of red and black through the holes of a mask. He didn't want to be caught here, so he rocked back on his heels, imagining the scenery of the subway once again.

        It took a terrifyingly long moment, but the world melted again, and he was in the subway, blinking rapidly as noise came into his ears once again and a sort of weight settled on his shoulders.  _There we go,_  Robin Hood encouraged in his static-filled voice.  _You have the correct mindsets to switch back and forth, now you just have to exercise your ability._

 _Back and forth, back and forth,_ Loki chirped. _You're a part of both worlds, now. You can exercise more control with my help in the other one, but first you must exist there._

        "So, it's kind of a way to escape a bad situation in either world," Goro mused. "Kind of... like that one movie in that one foster home." The memory was fuzzy, but... "Clown fish live in... anemones? And go in and out so that the anemone is accustomed to them."

        There was silence for a moment.  _I don't remember enjoying that movie,_  Loki replied.  _But yeah, similar concept I guess._

        They flickered in and out of both worlds until Goro got too dizzy to continue and headed back to the orphanage, where he was scolded and given a floor to clean, as expected. But he continued his practice every day after that despite the scoldings.

-

**_July 10_ _th, 2011_ **

        "It looks so similar," he remarked to them the first time he managed to flicker into the other world simply by stepping off of his bed. For a moment, he had questioned if he'd even left, but the boys sitting on their beds and staring at him with raw focus told him as much. Shadows, his Personas had called them. One for each person except for him. Some of the boys were missing though.

         _It's a reflection of humanity,_  Loki replied before his lilted voice adopted a sneer.  _Though if any place was to appear a prison, it should be this one- not the subway._

        Goro had no wish to argue against such a true statement, so he simply nodded and began walking through the home, his feet silent against the floor, ignoring the soft questions of where he was going and if he could take them with him from the Shadows. They didn't even look at him in reality, why should they here?  _You have the power,_ Loki answered, and again, Goro recognized it as truth. Even without his mask and claws, he still had more control over his fate than any shadow in this world. 

        It was a thought that made him warm inside and made Loki curl around him in excitement, because it was so new. So new, and wonderful.

-

         ** _October 1st, 2011_**

        Goro chatted with the Shadows at times when he wasn't figuring out his way around the other world. They told him their problems, and he listened to their complaints about the world at large. With the way things sounded, it became more and more believable that all of humanity wanted a prison. It was sad, really. Sometimes, instead of complaining, they gave him tips on how to get places- interesting tips that Loki quickly urged him to put to use.  _Do we really have any reason to break into the pantry?_ Robin Hood groaned, his voice quieter than normal, more obscured.

        "I'm curious to see if lockpicking it over here will really let me in if I flicker in and out enough." Goro continued to mess with the lock. "And I'm hungry."

         _Is that not reason enough?_  Loki challenged. There was a crackling sigh from Robin Hood, but no other protests. The lock clicked, Goro looked around for Shadows, and stepped out of the other world into reality to open the pantry, quickly grab some fruit snacks, and step back into the other world with his prize as he closed the pantry door behind him. 

        The consequences for that particular venture never hit. It wasn't like he'd stolen anything important.

-

         ** _July 21st, 2012_**

        "This isn't the prison." After months of scaling buildings, listening to the thoughts of people going about their lives, and exploring Tokyo, they'd finally come back to the subway for summer break after seeing a few Shadows enter it.

         _It's expanding._ Robin Hood sounded surprised. Surprised with a hint of worry.

         _More to explore, I guess,_  Loki chirped.  _I can smell separate, tiny thoughts among the sea of full Shadows down there- offshoots from the Sea of Souls, just like the guards of the prison, but much weaker._  He manifested fully, looking down at Goro with that smiling mask.  _It is high time you learned to use me to fight. You still have your sword, don't you?_

        It only took a thought to summon the red and black blade he'd taken from the depths. "Another lesson, then?" Goro smiled. "So long as I'm not in any real danger."

-

         ** _November 19th, 2012_**

        Monsters. That was all those "separate, tiny thoughts" were. There were even Slimes in this parody of a train system that only went downward, five floors with the monsters getting stronger and stronger until there was a great prison door. It didn't matter how far Goro went, however. It only took a terrified, but controlled, thought to get himself out of any predicament and back into the train station.

        And fighting felt  _fantastic._  Finally, something he was  _good_ at. 

        Gone were the endless days of him sneaking into the local library to steal away a book, Loki was a relentless instructor and source of brute strength. Robin Hood sometimes called out advice, but Loki was excited, pleased, and loud about it all. 

        They still did other things, of course, one could not simply spend all of their days fighting. He liked spying on people, especially those who came to the orphanage to adopt the younger boys. None really caught his attention until a man came in, his Shadow muttering about several red flags- a constant habit of being drunk and a need for money in particular. "How did you manage to be sober enough to adopt a child?" Goro asked the Shadow, hands on his hips.

        "That's none of your business!" the Shadow snarled, and Goro flinched back as his hand swiped through the air. Loki bristled, the air charging around him, and Robin Hood was suddenly _very_ present. "This is just another investment."

        "The future of said child?" Goro's eyes narrowed. "If there was only a way I could convince you to go home..."

         _There is,_  Loki spoke up.  _Well, kind of. I'm not sure what it does, but I am curious._

        "Oh?"

        "Listen brat, if you don't want to be the one under my thumb..."

         _You hate him, don't you? You want him out of the picture. So take away his control._ Loki manifested, and the Shadow flinched away, eyes wide.

        Goro really didn't need to think long about it. He'd been in the households of men like this before, and while he couldn't say he was fond of the other boys, no one deserved that. Besides, he was curious. He reached his hand out, and Loki fell on the shadow, which screeched as he turned black, eyes gleaming bright yellow before he faded away.

        A sudden surge of exhaustion ran through Goro's body, and he hurried back to the dorm room, appearing in reality again carefully before falling on his bed. It wasn't until later that whispers swept through the orphanage about how a client of the orphanage, for seemingly no reason, suddenly went berserk, destroying a vase and screaming gibberish for a full ten minutes on the floor.

        "Really?" Goro asked, head propped on his hand, and the group of boys talking about it flinched. They whispered about him too, calling him "the ghost," which while it had bothered him at first, he'd come to like. It sounded cool for a boy who to their knowledge, was simply never around when he should be. But they confirmed what they'd been talking about soon enough, apparently one of them had even seen it.

         _You really need to be more careful,_ Robin Hood warned after the boys went back to their conversation.

         _He deserved it,_  Loki snapped, and Goro just stared at the ceiling.

        "...I can affect the world."

        And that was the end of the conversation about the ethics of the matter. Ethics had no place in an orphaned boy's heart.  _Mother would be so pleased to be right about me,_  Goro thought to himself, dully, as he struck down a pixie in what they had all agreed was called Mementos.

        He didn't think about that again. He also had no reason to turn anyone else psychotic, so he didn't. Just remained the "ghost" of the orphanage, drifting between two worlds and watching as Mementos continued to expand.

-

         ** _July 3rd, 2014_**

        " _Embezzlement of funds, blackmail, lying! Masayoshi Shido, these accusations are quite hefty and the other politicians throwing them at you insist that they have evidence. What do you have to say?"_

        Fifteen-year-old Goro Fujiwara's eyes opened, and his Personas swelled within his heart as he turned his attention up towards the train's loudspeaker, listening to his father make a strong case. Strong enough to buy himself time, but not strong enough to lift himself out of the hot water that apparently other politicians had thrown him into. 

         _Can you hate him for me, Goro?_

        "I can affect the world," he whispered, continuing to listen as the interview crackled under the chatter of people going about their lives.


	11. Masayoshi Shido

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Goro Fujiwara becomes Goro Akechi and makes a deal with his father.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song for this chapter is this really cool cover of Ark: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_alFGg7vBCk *cracks knuckles* Welcome to Bad Decisions With Goro Akechi, who is finally here AS Goro Akechi. XD Hope you enjoy!

          ** _July 8th, 2014_**

        There was a knock at the door. Masayoshi Samael Shido, currently disgraced politician, looked up slowly from the papers that heralded said disgrace. "Enter," he replied after a moment. 

        One of the security personnel opened the door, and Shido instantly took note of how pale the man looked. "Pardon the interruption, sir." The man bowed slightly.

        Alright, so the situation was urgent enough to have the man looking spooked but not urgent enough to warrant immediate concern. "Has something happened?" Shido asked, sitting up straight in his chair. 

        "...There's a child out in the hall here," the man replied after a moment. "We don't know how he got in, but the people in the camera room saw him sitting on the floor with a book. When we asked him what he was doing there, he said that he wanted to speak with you."

        Shido frowned. "None of you saw him come in?" They were on the fourth floor of this office building with cameras in several corners. The stairs were guarded, and the elevator also had a security camera.

        "No, sir-" the guard started, looking behind him. "Go back to your spot, he hasn't given you leave to come in yet."

        "Wait." Shido raised a hand. This sounded like a highly unusual situation and it was not one that sat well with him. He liked to know what exactly he was dealing with when something had the potential to become disastrous if left alone, and this certainly fit that criteria. Not to mention that getting up from the bench and getting his attention was what he recognized as a power move, whether it was done on purpose or not. "You said he only wants to speak with me?"

        The guard hesitated, looking behind him once again. "That's correct," a soft voice replied.

        "Then he may come in, as long as he understand the consequences of wasting my time."

        The man backed out of the doorway with a nod, revealing the... well. He supposed the technical term would be teenager, and his threadbare, carefully buttoned white shirt was too big, his blue jeans also worn and faded. But, Shido noted, both clothing items looked like they'd been meticulously smoothed out before he'd had to sit on the floor, and his long brown hair was combed in such a way that it was messy yet neat at the same time. His bangs fell just above somewhat blank red eyes, and Shido realized with a jolt that he couldn't read the boy's expression, even when he smiled prettily and bowed in greeting.

        Oh yes, he was definitely glad he'd let him in to have a look himself now. "Well then. Who are you and what is your business with me?"

        "My name is Goro Akechi, sir." The teenager straightened up into the stiff posture he'd likely copied off of adults, along with all of the neatness his appearance managed to have. A tiny politician in the making. "And I thought you might like some assistance with your scandal problem."

        ...Well now. This conversation was going to be interesting at the very least.

-

**_April_ _10th, 2017_**

**_Morning_ **

        "So this began when you were fifteen years of age," Naoto summarized. "You went to Shido when you found out that he had been tied up in political scandal because he was your father and you wanted him to at least acknowledge your existence."

        "That was... basically my thought process, yes." Akechi nodded. He'd stopped fidgeting as much now that he'd been talking for awhile, though his hands were still wrapped around his wolf so tightly that the poor thing would have died from pressure if it was alive. "I knew that I could at least help him with that and at the time... I don't know. Some part of me thought that he was my last anchor to this world as a whole."

        "We won't go into that just yet." She shook her head slightly, though she had a slight sense of what he was talking about. Family was important to everyone in this world, and he had such a distinct lack of it that of course he would want to at least speak once with his estranged father. "This is when you became Goro Akechi, then?"

        "Yes. Robin Hood suggested to err on the side of caution, and Loki agreed because he wanted to surprise Shido with the knowledge that I was his son. So we left my mother's maiden name behind and decided to go with Akechi because we found Kogoro Akechi in a series of novels over those two years of exploring my powers. I cleaned up my appearance, Robin Hood growing more present in my mind as we moved towards this, and since he'd never really... well. I thought I might be going in the right direction since he was growing stronger."

        "He still wasn't a fully formative Persona?"

        "No. He just spoke to me, giving advice. I only ever used Loki to fight." Akechi shrugged. "He... needed something more than just conviction. But telling you that now would be getting ahead of myself."

        "Very well. You may continue."

-

        Getting into the building had been a piece of cake after the last two years of popping in and out of the other world as he saw fit. Most of the doors weren't even locked- and locked doors didn't even have to be lockpicked in reality anymore. He could simply open them in the Metaverse since he had more power than any mere Shadow- that was the shaky explanation that Loki had given anyways. Robin Hood had been the one to flatly admit that neither of them knew why he was able to do things now that he hadn't earlier.

        So he'd simply walked in, lockpicked a few doors without touching the physical counterparts- which were probably still locked- sat down on the floor of the hallway with his book and waited to be noticed. He'd taken note a long time ago that you did not give attention to adults before they gave attention to you. They wouldn't take you seriously otherwise.

        And everything had gone according to plan. The guard alerted Shido, the man himself gave Goro permission to enter, and Goro took a breath and brought all of Robin Hood's static to the forefront of his brain. He could not mess this up.

        Shido looked just like he had in the few newspapers that Goro had managed to scrounge up. Bald, imposing, expensive-looking sunglasses. Face carefully impassive but there was a hint of interest there as introductions were given. Good. He had a chance here. "It is awfully presumptuous for someone so young to come in and offer help with something that is generally kept between adults." Shido waved his hand in a curt gesture, and the door closed behind Goro.  _Keep smiling._  "I am assuming you have some skill to back up said offer?"

        "Yes sir." Goro dropped the smile here, this was business. "You've proven with how long you've been able to stay afloat with all of these rumors that are surrounding this... incident. If all those politicians that are accusing you were to... embarrass themselves in a public setting, damaging their credibility, I believe you could pull yourself up out of this mess."

        Shido's eyebrows slowly climbed upward. "And how do you propose that would happen?"

        "I can make people go temporarily insane by messing with their Shadow, sir." He blinked, hunching his shoulders a bit when he realized how that sounded. "Er... it's called a shadow, but it's not their literal shadow, it's-"

        "The repressed ideas, weaknesses, desires, instincts, and shortcomings of the unconscious human mind, according to Jungian philosophy?" Goro blinked again, looking back up to meet Shido's now rather intense gaze. "In other words, you claim to be able to touch minds?"

         _Basically, yes,_  Robin Hood muttered, so Goro nodded.

        "That's quite the claim. You've done this before?"

        "Once, but I know how to replicate it," Goro replied. "I've just seen no reason to do so until now. It's not permanent, but even a few moments of public madness are enough to ruin a reputation."

        "And I'm to simply believe such a far-fetched tale without any proof?" Shido asked, tone dangerous.

        Goro almost flinched, but he almost felt someone holding him in place. His head tilted, keeping his expression carefully blank.  _Yes good. If he cannot make a leap of faith, he is not worth your time,_  Robin Hood whispered.  _Not after all the we've years spent alone. We are offering help. If he refuses it, it is his loss._

        "With all due respect sir," Goro replied quietly. "I do not think you have the luxury of questioning your avenues of help."

        Shido's expression darkened briefly, but there was something else behind those glasses. Something that Goro could not read. "...You have a backbone, child." With a slight start, Goro recognized the tone as grudging respect. "I do not tolerate people talking back to me, but you happen to be spot-on and I do like my people to have a bit of strength. I will forgive you this once provided you bring me results. What will you need for this?"

        Goro did not sigh in relief, and he only gave that polite, controlled smile though some excitement did slip into it. Unavoidable with how Loki had leaped into the air and began swirling around him in a hyperactive fit. "The full names of all those you would like me to touch, sir. I can hunt down their Shadows with that."

        "That's all?" Shido arched an eyebrow.

        "That and some time to complete them. Like I said, I will need to hunt them down, and the Shadows are not always... necessarily where the people are." If he needed to go down to the prison, that might be a problem, but not too much of one. Besides, he'd gotten much better at dodging and fighting over the past two years. 

        Shido seemed to consider this, and then slid a piece of paper to himself and began writing. "I assume you can read kanji well enough?"

        "Yes, hiragana won't be necessary."

        "Good, you're more well-read than you look."  _Don't raise to the taunts. He's still testing you._  Loki's swirling vanished under Robin Hood's gentle warning. "I can hold out for a month at the most. If you can finish these sooner, do so, and report back to me. I trust entering this building will be no issue?"

        "I can get in here easily enough, sir."

        "Good." Shido folded the paper in half and stood, holding it out. Goro stepped up, accepting it. "Show no one that paper, and as soon as you no longer need it, shred and dispose of it."

        "I understand." Goro took a step back, bowing slightly.

        "...I am expecting great things from you, Akechi." Goro blinked, looking up as Shido sat down, and his personas hummed softly. "We will discuss things further once you bring me results."

        Goro nodded, recognizing the dismissal, and moved out, opening the door and going into the hall. The guard was nowhere to be seen, so he picked up his book, tucking the list inside, and headed to the doors, the startled people letting him out.  _This is going to be fun!_ Loki exclaimed.

         _It is more than aimless wandering, at least,_  Robin Hood allowed, and Goro just smiled. Noting that he was probably going to have to get used to being called Akechi. 

-

       "Never seen anything like it," Tanaka muttered while he and Shido studied the security feed. "Before he just entered the door, there was nothing on the cameras. He behaved himself on the way out, though." 

        "I can see that." Shido frowned at the feed before a slow smile crept across his features. "...Keep this to yourself. I think this is the start of something that could take us to the top."

        "Sir." Tanaka bowed, and around them, the god that commanded the cognitive world in Tokyo began putting his pieces on the board. It was time for the game to be built.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO SMALL ANNOUNCEMENT. I think you can change titles on Ao3, haven't checked yet. But if I can, Home is getting renamed to "A Rose By Any Other Name" when the next chapter comes out since I've actually figured out where this story is going and kind of what ties it all together rather than just being a hodgepodge mess. Just giving y'all two weeks notice before I go and switch things up and take you by surprise. 
> 
> Thank you all so much for reading. Your comments, bookmarks and kudos are always more motivation to keep this story moving. :)


	12. Budding Villian

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Goro Akechi goes around doing Shido's bidding before he's reeled back in and given a new offer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAPPY HALLOWEEN! Here's an update. XD The song for this chapter is Blooming Villain. Hope you enjoy!

**_April_ _10th, 2017_**

**_Morning_ **

        "Before we go any further, there's something logistical I'd like to know that... I couldn't exactly research after your erasure." 

        Akechi blinked, looking up at her. "Yes?"

        "You said that you were the ward of an orphanage, yes?" Naoto flipped through her unfortunately altered notes with a slight grimace. "Yet you changed your name with the confidence that Shido wouldn't find you at said orphanage and I never found any evidence of where you lived before the apartment in any of my admittedly limited investigations before and during the activity of the Phantom Thieves."

        "Oh, yes, you would want to know that." Akechi reached up, tugging on his hair. "Well, to be quite frank, I... I no longer saw the need to be in the orphanage about a year before I made contact with Shido." Naoto raised an eyebrow. "So I no longer lived there after my tutelage for middle school was completely paid. I spent most of my time in the Metaverse despite the toll it took on my body, becoming more accustomed to it. I even studied in there, and I studied a  _lot_ in the years before Shido because I've always liked learning."

        "Your activities were mostly studying and fighting if I remember correctly. Were you not planning on going to high school?"

        "I wasn't planning on paying for it," Akechi sighed, turning his gaze back to the table. "And I didn't actually go despite my high score on the entrance exam, I just lurked outside of the advanced classes where I'd been accepted and listened to the assignments, trying not to be caught before talking to Shido. Ideally, yes, I would have loved to have gone to high school legitimately, but I could not stand another day in that orphanage. At that point I was... well, pessimistic about doing anything in reality. I felt like I only really belonged in the Metaverse."

        So when an opportunity came to make a difference in reality, he jumped on it. "So you really were nobody everywhere except at your middle school by that point. Goro Fujiwara technically didn't exist."

        Akechi shook his head. "No. That's how I got away with lying."

        Naoto studied him for another moment. "Alright, continue. So your father gave you the list and you ran with it, if I remember correctly."

        A slight, sardonic smile crossed his face. "Yes. Yes I did."

          ** _July 9th, 2014_**

**_Morning_ **

        Goro ran around Mementos, his boots somehow silent on the subway floors even as practically flew down a set of stairs. "Stupid old men," he breathed. "Why can't the Shadows just stick with the people?"

         _I don't know, but they are very much down here. It's easier to pinpoint them this time around, though-_

_That would be because I'm helping and we have a purpose to doing this,_  Robin Hood interrupted Loki, tone slightly curt. Loki only snarled back in response, and Goro shook his head. They all needed to keep it together if this whole thing was going to be successful. But he did definitely know where he was going, and so further into Mementos they went. 

        They found the first politician on the third floor in a little alcove by himself. Goro dropped to a crouch in the shadows just outside said alcove when he saw the Shadow turning around in alarm. He took a breath, reaching a hand up towards his mask. "Who's there?" the man yelled, the tone aggressive. A fight, if not taken care of quickly.

        "Loki."

        The mask was crushed in the claws of his gauntlet, flames roaring to life at the same time as Loki shooting around the corner, slashing down hard with his sword. The man shrieked, then his eyes gleamed bright yellow, his body turning black and then fading away.

         _Hmm._  Robin Hood's tone was thoughtful.  _We're doing this anyways so I may as well ask. Loki, does he go psychotic right away?_

_Yeah. You think that maybe he shouldn't?_

_Well, I don't think it really matters right now. But we have a month to complete this, and well- it might be useful to keep our options open._

        "We can control the timing?" Goro asked.

         _I can,_  Loki replied, pride evident in his voice.  _Part of turning them psychotic, you know. It will... just take a little more work. We'll actually have to fight so I'm not entirely focused on turning them psychotic quickly enough that we're avoiding said fight._

        "So it might be good to experiment," Goro mused. "I see where you're going with this. Alright. Next one down, we'll see what his schedule looks like and then fight him for real."

         _We've never fought an actual person before,_  Loki chirped.  _Should be interesting._

          ** _July 11th, 2014_**

**_Afternoon_ **

        It wasn't really that interesting. About the same as fighting any old fragment monster, only a little tougher. The monkey creature at his feet faded into a person again, coughing while Loki pounced on him. His eyes glowed a bit brighter, body going black before he faded away completely. "Huh. It'd take a little extra to kill a person the same way we kill fragments, right?" he asked.

        _You have to kill them on purpose. There is no way for you to accidentally kill a Shadow after their defeat,_  Robin Hood replied firmly, his voice still filled with static even though the words were clear.  _Turning them psychotic is a conscious decision, killing them is the same thing in terms of... well, extra effort._

        Loki swirled around him as he considered that, looking at his list and the notes he'd taken about the man's schedule. "Alright, let's keep on like this, then."

         ** _July 15th, 2014_**

**_Afternoon_ **

        He was moving through the crowd at the subway station when there was a sudden gasp and someone caught the back of the collar of his shirt, hitting the electrical burns. Goro gave a strangled sound of pain before he stiffened up all at once, raising his arms and taking a deep breath- and then was suddenly released. "Akechi, don't- don't make a scene," a somewhat familiar man's voice said. "I apologize for that."

        There were only a few people who would know him by that name. Goro slowly exhaled, attempting to bring Robin Hood to the forefront of his brain, and then turned to give the guard he'd seen in front of his father's door a small smile that was still more Loki's sharp edges and teeth than anything else because his wounds now hurt. "Can I help you?" he asked through those bared teeth.

        The man raised his hands, obviously trying to appear as non-threatening as possible. "Our mutual employer would like a word," he replied. "You're... very hard to find. I've been looking for two days."

        Goro eyed him, but... he had to admit that it was true. He dropped the smile, taking another breath. "When would he like to meet with me?" he asked, head tilted just so even though there wasn't much point.

        "Tomorrow, during office hours. Preferably in the morning." The man glanced at the bandages on Goro's neck and grimaced. "He also would not like you to complete the list if at all possible. There's been a change in plans."

        "Mm. I only had two left." Goro sighed, looking away. "I'll be there in the morning."

        "He'd like you to simply step into the office if you can manage that. No need to bother with knocking." Goro gave a curt nod, and the guard returned it, slipping back into the crowd. Goro watched him leave, then nearly jumped out of his skin when someone else brushed up against him. He quickly hurried out of the subway, onto the streets, slipping into the Metaverse streets with a relieved sigh. He supposed this was for the best. He knew he needed more sleep because of these burns, perhaps he could spend today napping somewhere. Also mentally preparing to speak with his father again.

         ** _July 16th, 2014_**

**_Morning_ **

        His father's Shadow was not in the office. Goro tilted his head, looking around the place that could be reality if it weren't completely empty. Loki fidgeted, and Robin Hood sighed. "Loki, I need you to stay out of this one," Goro murmured. 

         _I know, I know, I know._ Loki swirled for a moment and then completely vanished, leaving nothing but the quiet and a soft sense of melancholy determination. 

        Goro closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. Then he stepped out of the Metaverse and into reality with a small smile, bowing to his father. Only taking a hint of pleasure in seeing how Shido's eyes widened just slightly and his grip on his pen tightened briefly. . The guard was here too, he noted with a bit of interest. His Shadow had not been. "Hello. I was told there was a change in plans?" Goro questioned, coming out of the bow.

        "Yes, thank you for coming on such short notice," Shido replied smoothly, all signs of discomfort gone as quickly as they'd come. "I must admit that I... underestimated your abilities. How many on that list have you affected?"

        "Four out of the six you gave me, sir."

        "And... none of them are aware of your involvement?" Shido frowned him- no, Goro realized- the bandages on his neck. "You're injured."

        "Shadows put up a fight, sir." Shido arched both eyebrows. "They don't want to let go of the image they've so carefully crafted, you see. Even in their general cognition."

        "That does make sense. I was just expecting your work to be less... physically demanding." Shido shook his head slightly. "No matter. It has occurred to me that perhaps it would be suspicious if everyone who has slandered me suddenly lost all of their credibility. Your work was incredibly effective."

        Pride swelled in Goro's chest for a moment before he tamped it down, though he did offer a small smile. "Thank you. I'm glad to be helpful."

        "Which brings me to my next question." Shido laced his fingers together. " _Why?_  Why are you so willing to help me? You're young, even if you are rather clever and extraordinarily powerful. What does a slandered politician have to do with you?"

        Goro tilted his head.  _It is a good thing that we talked about this,_ Robin Hood muttered.  _I do not think he would take well to the true reason._

        No, Goro agreed as he looked at the cold, suspicious light in those eyes that were only obscured by sunglasses. No, he would not. "Because you're the only politician who is bold enough to tell things as they are." Shido arched both eyebrows, the cold light fading to pure curiosity. Good, curiosity was good. "You show the corruption in this world for what it is. People are content to be lead, and therefore need strong leadership. But our government isn't cutting it."

        Shido stared at him for another moment, and Goro stared back, trying not to swallow even though his throat was going very, very dry. "You don't have a home, do you?" was the next question and Goro blinked from the unexpectedness of it, but shook his head. "I thought not. You're terribly hard to find. So you're suffering from the current system and want things to change." 

        It was very nice of him to just spell out the lie. Goro nodded, sealing it. "Give a man a fish, he eats for a day. Teach him, he eats for a week. Beg someone for a home, it's not a certainty that you'll get it, but if you can get legislation passed, life improves for both you and others."

        "I don't think that's how the metaphor goes, but points for effort," Shido sighed, but he was smiling slightly. "Listen. If that's your reasoning, I do have an offer for you." Goro straightened. "We'll have to get you a proper living address but for now, Tanaka here has offered his basement. You don't have to stay there constantly, but I do need do be able to get ahold of you. We'll also need to get you a phone. You take orders from me, do exactly as I say to get me the seat of prime minister, and we'll steer this country back in the right direction together. Sacrifices will have to be made, but it will all be for the glory of Japan. Are we clear?"

        Robin Hood was more  _present_ than he ever had been. Goro nodded once again, and Shido's smile grew a bit sharper. "Excellent. I'm very, very glad to have you aboard, Akechi. Let's get you settled in and we'll discuss your involvement in the grand scheme of things tomorrow."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Teenagers are terrifying creatures.
> 
> The next chapter will take awhile, since it's uh... it's a big chapter with a lot of stuff in it that's important. Might get split up might not, but it's gonna be big regardless. That and November is always super duper busy so I'll see y'all again on December 2nd. Cheers!


	13. Wakaba Isshiki

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first order to kill.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQtatbUFy-8
> 
> *Cranks up the volume on A Funeral of Flowers to max* Let's do this.

**_April_ _10th, 2017_**

**_Morning_ **

"July, you said, was when all of this went down?" Akechi's gaze slid away from hers, red eyes staring at nothing in particular. He knew what she was going to ask about now, she could see it in the way his shoulders were hunched and one hand was clenched around one of his toy's ears. There was no way around it, despite the bitter taste it left in her mouth, something between smoke and gunpowder. There was silence for a moment, she eyed their empty water glasses, and sighed, pausing the recording. "One moment, don't say anything important."

        She took the glasses to the kitchen, leaving him in there to compose himself. Composing herself again as she filled them with water. Mentally putting up all of her boundaries she'd created when thinking about Wakaba Isshiki. She needed to hear the account. He needed to tell someone of what had happened. No one knew what had happened. She took a breath, let it go, and picked up the glasses, going back into the other room.

        He hadn't moved, and she set the glasses of water down, taking a sip of her own before turning the recording on again. "So, it was only a little over a month later that someone died by your hands. The first, I believe."

        "She was my first," he replied, voice quiet but loud and clear enough to be picked up by the recording. He still wasn't looking at her. "Shido has always been... paranoid. He thought it best to rip up threats by the roots before they were even truly threats. Once he had a grasp on what I was doing, he reached out to Wakaba Isshiki, who was heading up the research on cognitive psience... which, as a person who was helping and supporting her with that, I'm sure you knew."

        "She died on August 21st. The courts ruled it a suicide." She'd known, she'd known from the very beginning that something was wrong. She'd attended the funeral, the court case that had oddly victimized poor Futaba, and had known that something was terribly off about the entire thing. But there were no leads. No case of poison, and with Wakaba's field of research, that had scared her. So she looked deeper and had been startled at what she had found. "You were ordered to kill her?"

        "Yes." He closed his eyes, that distant look appearing on his face again, and Naoto sensed another, quiet presence. He slowly exhaled, opening his eyes and straightening up to look at her, some semblance of the young detective she'd spent so long watching creeping in. The mask. "I was ordered to kill her because she would not cooperate."

        "...Leave nothing out of this one."

        "I wouldn't dream of it." Again, his eyes grew distant, that quiet presence in the air again. "It's about time someone actually knew."

         ** _August 19th, 2014_**

**_Morning_ **

         _We've made a grave miscalculation._

_That's an understatement, and you know it! God. God, we should have seen this coming. Mother was a fool-_

_Don't say that._

_SHE WAS. But she was right about one thing, and it was the one thing she always constantly talked about._

        "Akechi?" Shido's voice was sharp. "Is there a problem?"

        Goro took a breath, not looking up from the manila folder that his father had given him. What was he supposed to say to this?  _Not that it wasn't in the contract,_ Robin Hood warned.  _We promised we would follow his orders without question. It's not written, and we have some leeway, I'm certain, but nothing that could get us out of this predicament._

        No, and with the reasoning that Shido had for giving this order... he doubted refusal would go well for him. He was an orphan. He could hide in the Metaverse. But he didn't like his chances of survival. Shido had too many connections for him to truly be safe ever coming back out of there. "I'm just considering how I might go about this. I've never killed anyone with my powers before."

        "I need her dead," Shido insisted. "Turning her psychotic will not do the job here. And I've tipped her off too much, she is going to be on guard."

        "That may make my job harder."

        "Akechi, look at me." Goro took only a moment to gather himself and looked up at Shido, face kept carefully expressionless. "I told you there would have to be sacrifices in order to fix the world," his father continued, tone and expression deadly serious. "I need this done, and I need it done quickly. Don't be reckless, but our agreement only stands if I have a use for you."

        A use. Of course. Goro's lips twitched downwards, Loki snarling inside of him. This woman was a researcher of the wrong thing, that was all.

        "You know what will happen should you refuse me, boy."

        Yes, he'd seen it. He'd overheard conversations with the yakuza. Shido worked fast, and he was taking the boost in popularity he'd been given and was carefully laying the groundwork for the Diet. If Wakaba told people how interested he was in cognitive psience, if someone found out about the Metaverse... there truly was no safe way to refuse this, and Goro didn't want to die. Something twisted inside of him, but he managed to choke out the words in a way that sounded natural, the static that was Robin Hood becoming worse. "I understand. It will be done soon. You said you wanted it to look like a suicide?"

         ** _August 20th, 2014_**

**_Late Evening_ **

        "This isn't working!" Goro's voice was too sharp, too loud against the walls of Mementos. "Why is she of all people so hard to find?"

        _Robin Hood's not helping._  Loki's voice was sulky.

        There was a soft stir of static. "Robin Hood, please. I have to find her. We'll die if we don't, you know that. He'd snap the neck of an orphan boy in a heartbeat, leave us all in the gutter. I... I don't want to die." His voice cracked but he didn't care. If he couldn't be weak here, he couldn't be weak anywhere and he just... he couldn't constantly keep the mask up. He couldn't.

        A crackling sigh. _It's not just me. She's different than the rest of the Shadows we've come across. It's... as if she's in the prison but she's not._

_What?_

_There is one place we haven't looked,_ Robin Hood continued, disregarding Loki's confusion.  _One place that doesn't shift around like the rest of Mementos but we've never looked past._

        "You mean the lake." Goro frowned, but his quieter Persona had a point. Well, aside from the fact that it did actually shift places. It was always on the level halfway between the surface and the depths. He started down the stairs again, looking at his file. 

        Wakaba Isshiki. Researcher. Single. 35 years old. Short black hair, warm brown eyes, glasses. Nothing wrong with her record whatsoever except for the fact that she was a bit eccentric. Pleasure to work with regardless of that eccentricity. He'd looked everywhere in the upper levels and had even peeked into the prison for the first time in months. The improved security there had startled him. He'd had to run out of there with the guards on his heels, and he could see that more people were going down there by the day. 

        It was the way the trains went in this parody of a station after all.

        He emerged on the level where he was supposed to be, ducking away from a couple of behemoth shadows that were wandering about. He had to fight Isshiki's shadow to fulfill Shido's orders to the letter, though the thought of doing so set his teeth on edge. Loki was prickling across his skin, grateful for the challenge but irritated at being treated like an attack dog on a leash. Then again, Goro didn't know what he had been expecting. This had been what he'd signed up for.

        He hopped into the tunnel, moving through the space only big enough for humans and not the behemoths of the tunnels, and emerged on the other side, looking through his visor out at the lake. He blinked. "The braziers..."

         _They've been lit._ Light was reflecting across the once- well, no, it was still dark. But instead of the simple deep blue that the reflections of Mementos's red and black walls had shimmered in, the fire in the two gray braziers at the end of the path he was on, just before the lake, brought out the life within the depths. Stars flickered beneath the surface, clouds swirling like a storm was brewing.  _I think it is,_  Loki continued at that thought.  _I can sense her. Look._

        Blue fire flashed in Goro's vision, freeing his eyes from the visor as the Persona manifested in all his black and white glory, pointing his massive broadsword just to the right of the braziers. In the distance on the lake within this likely endless cavern, there was an island on the lake that had not been there before, firelight emanating faintly from it.. Within the waters that were calm on the surface and turbulent beneath, was a broken up path of stone. He could walk on them easily enough, he might have to leap a few times, but he had a path. He stared at it for a moment, and then took a breath and walked towards it. "This... is going to be tough," he told Loki, who had not turned back into his mask form.

         _I know,_  the Persona replied. _We've never seen anything like this. And she knows more about the cognitive realm than likely anyone we've faced._  He turned his smiling mask towards Goro.  _But we can and will win. I refuse to die, and I know you do as well._

        Goro gave a curt nod, walking from stone to disconnected stone. Picking up the pace as he was forced to jump at times, the island growing closer and closer as he carefully moved across the lake. He could see the landscaping now. The ruins were... where had he... oh. Right. The pictures of the Ancient Greece Pantheon. This place looked about the same, except for the ground was gray and like the rest of Mementos, only... more natural. More fiery. Smoldering. When his boots hit the ground, the warmth of the area hit immediately. Volcano. He could smell the ash in the air now, and he drew his sword, Loki turning into his visor once again as he kept walking through the area, both of his Personas highly curious about this new area. None of them had ever seen anything like this before.

        The ash crunched underneath his boots until the gray ground gave way to the white marble of the ruined temple. In the center of the room was... a throne? It was dark blue and in the shape of an egg, and it was open to reveal _her_ sitting there, staring at him much the same way he was staring at her, her eyes the odd glowing yellow of all Shadows but the rest of her...

        The rest of her robbed him of his breath. 

        She wore a flowing black Greek dress like the ones he'd seen in pictures, the hem all the colors of flames, just like the ends of her short black hair and the feathers wrapped around her waist, tangled in her pale fingers. There were flames on the corners of her square glasses as well, but they were small. "So you've come," she sighed, breaking the silence and eye contact, closing her eyes and looking away. "I thought I was wrong about the way that I would die, but I should have known better than to underestimate Shido's methods and paranoia."

        "You knew I was coming?" slipped out of his mouth in his shock.

        "I guessed." She gave a slight shrug. "An educated one, but then, those are generally correct when I make them. Shido was so concerned about my research that I figured he must have found a way to use it, especially with all of the psychotic breaks that benefited him." She looked back up at him. "If he had not come to me, I never would have guessed, but here we are. You standing there with a sword and me here with the beginnings of a Palace I do not want." 

        "Does she know too?" Goro asked cautiously. "The other you?"

        "No." Isshiki's Shadow shook her head. "People are often completely unaware of what is happening within their mind, they only see how their viewpoint colors the outside world. My other self is a little more aware of what's going on in here, but has never seen the world she theorized exists. I, however, know most of the inner workings and know exactly what is happening to me. I also know that you, unlike everything else in here, can murder me."

        "You don't sound too alarmed by that." Then again, he hadn't raised his sword to her yet.

        "This Palace will kill me anyways." She lifted her hands from the feathers on her waist, gesturing to the ruins. "You see all of this? I managed to dig my heels in and hold some control over myself, but there is always a part of a person they want to suppress. My pride in my research-" Her breath caught, and the temperature rose all around them. Goro swung his sword up, dropping into a fighting stance instinctively, and she looked down on him with the eyes of a hungry predator for a moment before the gaze softened. "You see? It's already happening." Her voice was quieter, and this time, their gazes held. "If this place is finished, it will bleed into who I am in reality. I will hold my research on a pedestal. I may commit horrible things. I will not be the same Wakaba Isshiki I am here because... I looked too deep into something I did not know I should have not have."

        "I don't want to kill you," he told her hoarsely. He was beginning to get it. The flames, the ash, the ruin. The predatory look. She sat there, a competent adult who this world was eating alive, desperately trying to fight back like his Shadows were a lifetime ago, and yet here he stood, his ugly, serrated sword in his hands and orders to kill her hanging over his neck like a guillotine.

        "I don't wish to die. But it will happen one way or another, and you would not be here if you did not need to be. Shido is likely threatening your life as well." She stood from the throne, the area around her warping the way it always did when Shadows were about to transform, and the air around them grew almost unbearably hot. "Come at me with your blade, child. Earn what you must from my ashes."

        Her form exploded, fire screaming around her, and the clear, piercing call of a bird of prey shook Goro to his core. "LOKI!" he yelled, the Persona zooming into focus at the same time a massive bird with feathers all the colors of flame rose into the air, spreading giant wings that were each longer than Shido's height. She struck downwards with her beak and Loki's blade spun, erecting a physical wall. She recoiled from the beak attack, but then she swept both him and the Persona aside with a wing, Loki screeching as they flew through the air and into a pillar.

        They didn't have time to breathe. Goro dropped to the ground, rolling as she blasted fire towards him, coming back up on his feet. "Vorpal blade!" he yelled, then snarled as the pain hit while Loki slashed down on the bird, causing her to give a beautiful, mournful cry of pain. She was still standing though, and she came after him once again.

        Makarakarn, tetrakarn, slash and jab and _dodge_. The world was a screaming blur of feathers and fire and soot as they struggled back and forth across the marble surface that either looked ruined or pristine. She did not fly, preferring to beat at him with her wings or try to stomp on him. The wings always hit. He was going to have many, many bruises after this, if he won. Her beak nearly speared him, her yellow eyes full of the madness of the hunted. If he won. He was also going to have burns if he was not reduced to ash today. 

        He did not want to die today, he thought as she swept him and Loki to the side again and he grabbed on to her feathers, dropping his sword and dealing with the heat and the fact that she was flapping so much he could no longer tell which way was up. His life was a wreck but he wanted to live.  _Not another statistic,_  Loki snarled in agreement.

         _You're certain this is the path you want to take? One that ends in her death? One that has you chained to Father's will?_

        There was no static this time, and Goro gave a faint sob at the sound of Robin Hood's baritone voice, pain splitting his head. "Please. Please, she's bleeding, if I can just..."

         _...Hamaon._

        The world erupted in bright light crisscrossing all over itself, and the phoenix screamed one last time. Goro gasped, blinded by tears and pain, and dropped badly onto the ground, shuddering. Loki's hands caught his shoulders, cold and wavering, and he squeezed his eyes shut tightly before slowly opening them up.

        The throne had been completely destroyed, and there were ashes on the now cracked marble ground. Isshiki's shadow lay on the ground, the flames gone, her dress spread about her, taking deep, shuddering breaths.  _Quickly, quickly, before she rises again,_ Loki urged, and Goro staggered to his feet, looking around for his sword, locating it quickly and stumbling over to it. Picking it up with numb, shaking, clawed hands. Was he really any different?  _Does it matter?_  

        Loki was practically begging at this point, and Goro moved over to Isshiki. Her eyes opened, and she looked up, meeting his. There was so much in those eyes. Eyes that flickered from yellow to a warm, chocolate brown. He froze in place again. "You're so young..." she whispered. "If I could make you hate me I would. But Shadows cannot lie. You won, child. Kill me."

        "I don't want to." He was crying, he realized, chest heaving from more than just the pain of the burns and the bruises, and the tears weren't just from the smoke. "I don't want to."

         _Come on, you know what will happen if we don't,_ Loki protested.

        _Central. You made a contract._

        "...Listen. Please, just do me a favor?" Goro continued to stare at her. "After I am gone, live. And please... look after my daughter as best you can without drawing Shido's attention to her."

        Something in Goro's blood ran cold. "Daugh... daughter?"

        "Futaba's a little younger than you." Isshiki lifted herself onto her elbows, a plea written all across her face. "If this place consumes me, she'll no longer have a warm and caring mother. She'll have to deal with someone second best, and I cannot live with your death on my conscience for that. She is strong, and I will feel better knowing she at least has someone."

        "You have a..."

         _You made a contract, Goro Akechi. Are you your father's son, or not?_

"This isn't fair!" he screamed at the voice, but did not lower his sword.

         _It never has been,_  Loki snapped.  _As much as I hate- HATE agreeing with him, if we do not do this we WILL NOT survive._

        "Child..."

         _Make this contract too._

        Goro took in another gulping sob of a breath, his ugly, stupid sword pointed right at her unprotected heart. "I'll look after her. I'll make sure she- she doesn't die."

        She smiled, closing her eyes. "Thank you."

        She dissolved into ropy black smoke the same way the victims he turned psychotic did when he plunged his sword straight into her chest. The island rumbled around him, chunks beginning to fall, and he ran, ran for the shore, golden light surrounding him, his visor, everything disappearing into normal clothing as he ran and ran and  _ran_ across the stones. "Why?" he yelled.

         _You know the story of my namesake, Central._  Robin Hood's voice was heavy with regret.  _I must have a connection to someone. I must have a master. You chose Father._

"It shouldn't... I didn't... Stupid..." He almost tripped and fell into the sea. The path was dissolving behind him, just like the island already had. He kept running, reaching the shore, falling to  his knees on the solid ground there and continuing to cry, tears falling freely onto his bare hands. "Stupid, stupid,  _stupid..._ "

        There was a hand on his back, and he looked up. Another version of himself knelt next to him, golden eyes full of concern and sadness. He wore an odd red cap, golden wings on either side of his head, and an outfit made entirely of white clothing. " _If you wish to break the vow, know that I cannot help you through that,_ " he said, voice quiet. " _But... we both know you aren't going to do that. It's too much, too far in now._ "

        "I know. I know, but I can't do this," Goro choked out. "I'm a monster, I- I just... did Loki...?"

        " _Tomorrow afternoon in traffic. We have to make sure her daughter is... alright."_

        Goro choked on his own breath. He had... he had to live. He'd made another promise. "I can't..."

        " _I can help you."_

        Goro continued to cry softly in the confines of the Metaverse, the area around him too quiet, until eventually, his doppleganger disappeared, a new mask appearing on his face. He took a breath. "Be my mask, Robin Hood," he murmured, taking it in his hands, his voice steady for the first time in hours. "Take it, take everything about me that can't smile in his presence, that I might have to lose in front of him and hide it. I'll make him pay for this, but I'll play nice for now. You know that's always been the vow."

        The last of the tears mingled with the blood as he ripped the mask off, summoning his second Persona for good this time.

         ** _August 21st, 2014_**

**_Afternoon_ **

        There was a crowd on the sidewalks of Shibuya, but then, there always was. Many people gasped when a woman with short black hair suddenly stiffened up and then, without warning, threw herself in front of a car. There was a scream of fear from many, but the loudest from the young girl who had been with the woman, her short orange braids flying behind her as she also made to leap into the street but was caught by the back of her shirt and pulled back.

        The car hit the woman and the girl screamed louder. "Mom!"

        "Oh god," someone gasped. 

        "Someone call an ambulance!" another person yelled.

        "Let go of me!" Futaba Isshiki screamed, her voice shrill and almost beyond even desperate as she flailed against his grip, doing her best to wrench herself from his hand on her shirt. " _MOM!_ "

        Akechi kept a firm hold her despite how she was beating at his arm, watching as traffic stopped. An adult eventually picked up the screaming girl, giving a frantic "thank you" to Akechi while Futaba's wails only grew louder. Almost a psychotic breakdown in of itself, not that he could blame her. Wakaba had most certainly loved her daughter. Goro's mother hadn't loved him and he'd been upset when she had died. He had grieved. Futaba's pain would be far worse.

        He looked down at the broken body in the street, the black ooze on her lips before people crowded around her and the sound of sirens began to wail. He'd done this. To Wakaba, to poor Futaba. He was staring on the results of his handiwork, a child among thousands of people in the streets of Tokyo. 

        Futaba gave one more wail that he could hear before she dissolved into tears, crying into her hands, kneeling on the curb surrounding by strangers. Akechi closed his eyes, turned around, and then slid through the panicking crowd, moving to where it was calmer in the city.

        This was what he was now. He would do whatever it took to survive in this world, keeping as much of himself as he could, not that much was left.

        Goro and his tears had burned away in Robin Hood's flames. Akechi was Shido's gun.

        At the very least, guns were a merciful way to go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought this chapter was going to have more Shido, then realized it would flow better if I did that bare minimum, so he can just go somewhere that is less nice where I don't have to see him. So yeah, this chapter isn't much longer than some of the others, I don't think, but still very important. See you with the next update!
> 
> Rest in peace Wakaba.


	14. Falling Out of 2013

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akechi settles into his role as Shido's hitman and begins laying preparations for his job as a detective.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What the flying flip is a deadline? 
> 
> Late update, but I hope you all enjoy! Also I named the SIU Director because he's somewhat more relevant lol.

**_April_ _10th, 2017_**

**_Morning_ **

        Naoto hit pause on the recording again, she couldn't help herself after hearing all that and he wasn't looking great besides, his red eyes glassy and tears making their way down his cheeks. She took a sharp breath. "Alright then. Thank you. One moment." She stood, moving over to one of the dressers and getting down a box of tissues, setting it on the table. She took a few out to blow her nose and wipe away her own tears before nudging it towards Akechi. He reached up to his face with a frown, sighing when his fingers hit one of the tear trails, and took a few tissues himself to wipe them away. "I suppose I should have seen the signs, but I had no idea how things worked in Tokyo," she sighed. "It was more... subtly aggressive than anything I'd ever seen before in the Metaverse."

        "Subtly aggressive is a good way to describe Yaldaboath," Akechi muttered, rubbing his face before pinching the bridge of his nose, and then just setting his head on the table. "Stupid greed-ridden robot spider. I'm glad Kurusu shot him."

        "You knew about him?" Naoto blinked, between the quickly spoken insult and the flat tone, it was clear that his feelings towards the god were... not good. 

        "I'll get there." He lifted his head to peer up at her through his long bangs. "I didn't for a very long time. Ak- Kurusu." He exhaled, sitting up again and rubbing at his face one more time. "I've never called him Akira," she heard him grumble distractedly before he looked at her, resting his chin on his hand. "Kurusu found out a lot more quickly than I did, but he was being guided. He was brought into the mess to stop Yaldaboath." He looked away again. "It took me, oh... two years? It wasn't long before the Phantom Thieves came into the picture."

        "I'll wait, then." She looked towards the recording, then shook her head and looked back to him. "It didn't take much work to figure out who the masked child in the Metaverse was after I saw you the first time in reality." He tilted his head, blinking. "Before we start your tale again, you likely have questions about the bunker."

        "Ah, it's just basically ' _what the hell_?'" His expression darkened almost imperceptibly. "That place was odd and a deathtrap. Would you even have answers as to why it was in Mementos?"

        "No," Naoto admitted. "And I would like to finish with Tokyo before getting into Inaba. One massive story at a time, and all."

        Akechi gave a small nod, sitting up and placing his hands on the wolf again, and Naoto turned the recording back on. "After Wakaba, Shido turned his attention to me before realizing you could not get rid of me, and so he rescinded his orders and got me basically exiled from Tokyo. This took quite a bit of time."

        "Until about October 5th, yes," Akechi replied. Down to the exact date, his memory was impressive. Naoto remember her conversation with Shido that day, seeing the boy walking into the office building for the first time. Shido had been campaigning hard at the time and she'd made him very nervous, leading to her banishment. And then... "It was at that point that he began giving me spying assignments, and I found out some very interesting things about the SIU while moving in and out of Mementos."

        "Let's start there, then."

        **_Octo_** _ **ber 15th, 2013**_

_**Afternoon** _

"You're pretty deep down in Mementos for being a pillar of law and order, sir." Akechi cocked his head at the shadow from the ledge where he was perched. "You are Director Shinobu Kinzo, right?"

        "Yes, not that I see why that's any of your business," the old man snapped, glaring up at him. "Why do you question me being down here? Law and order are decided by those who take it into their own hands."

         _I mean,_ Loki commented idly.  _He's not wrong._

 _Yes he is,_ Robin Hood groaned.

        "I'm not saying you're wrong," Akechi sighed, sliding down to a more comfortable position. "I'm just surprised you managed to take it into your own hands. Must have had to some pretty impressive... maneuvering."

        The Shadow puffed itself up, and Akechi forced himself not to roll his eyes. It was hard to shrug off Loki and his impulses when the Persona was literally the reason for the clothes he was wearing. Thank heavens the mask he wore was so concealing. "Yes, well, hide enough evidence and a forgery works wonders."

        His Personas' distraction vanished, and Akechi leaned forward, eyes glinting behind his visor. "Oh, is that so? Tell me more."

 **_Octo_ ** _**ber 16th, 2013**_

_**Evening** _

         _And I'm annoyed again._

         _You always are, be quiet,_ Robin Hood hissed.  _There are too many people around for us to screw this up._

 _Yes, us at a party is a_ brilliant  _idea, Father. Really helps with that low profile._

        "E-excuse me. Is this seat taken?"

        Akechi blinked at the soft voice, stopping his people watching to look at the girl who had approached his bench. A girl his age at this party. There weren't many teenagers here, all of them dressed as and composed as finely as the adults. He gave the girl a polite smile. He had nothing better to do while waiting for his father anyways, so- "No, it isn't. You may sit."

        "Thank you." She sat down, folding her hands on the fine fabric of the black dress that probably cost more money than his mother used to make in a year. Then again, he could probably say the same thing about his new suit. "Standing around was getting boring, so I thought that I would sit around instead."

        "You get to rest your feet at least," Akechi agreed. He was getting better at talking to people now that Robin Hood was helping a lot more. The urges to skulk and hide were lessening by the day, and so was the effort it took to wire his jaw shut around a snarky retort. He eyed the curls around her ears and the nape of her neck that were arranged just so with a bit more interest than the jewelry and dress, she somehow made the hair work without straightening it and he hadn't had the opportunity to see something like it before. "I'm just waiting on a meeting, so I'll likely be leaving the seat soon anyways."

        "How professional of you." She smiled, and it didn't seem patronizing. "My father just began bringing me to these. I'm not quite sure I like them, but it is an excuse to spend time with him." Akechi nodded, and they both turned their gazes back out to the crowd.

        It wasn't five minutes later that Shido caught his eye and jerked his head just slightly. Akechi nodded a goodbye to the girl, she gave him a small wave and smile in return, and he stood, heading over to his father, clasping his hands behind his back once he was there. "The director isn't available yet, but there are matters I need to speak about with you beforehand. I'm glad to see you managed to get in."

        "Getting into places is my specialty, Shido-san," Akechi replied with a small nod. "Other matters?"

        "Housekeeping, really." Shido gestured him over to an emptier area, and Akechi followed. "We're moving you again, to Yamamoto's basement this time."

         _Oh my god,_  Loki snapped while Robin heaved one of his heavier sighs. _At this point, I'd rather be homeless._

_Technically, we still are. Maybe this one won't smell like goat cheese._

_IT BETTER NOT._

"Which one was Yamamoto-san?" Akechi asked, slowly blinking.

        "Ah, of course, you wouldn't have met." Shido grimaced briefly. "He's our IT man, the one working on encrypting Wakaba's research. He's steadily climbing in his company to the top position despite lacking any sort of spine."

         _We're going to be in the basement of an IT man,_ Robin Hood commented idly.  _Does that make it a secret bunker?_

There was another outraged screech from Loki at that thought while Akechi involuntarily winced. Shido's eyes narrowed. "Apologies, sir." He looked back out at the crowd. "There's still a bit of discomfort standing, is all. I'll make preparations to move locations again." 

        "That toe should be healed soon, yes?" Akechi nodded. "Have you run into anything like that odd bunker yet?"

        "No sir." He gave a slight shrug. "It was an oddity. Mementos did gain a couple more levels the other day, though."

        "I see... ah." Shido straightened, staring into the crowd. "Did you get the chance to speak to Director Kinzo in there?"

        "Extensively." Definitely enough to recognize him walking towards them, that slightly condescending smile still on his face. Akechi felt a faint smile of his own flicker onto his lips. "He was very proud of himself."

        "I suppose we shall see how long that lasts, then." There was a cruel edge to the words, but then they were walking forward to greet the man. "Director Kinzo, thank you for taking the time to speak to me," Shido greeted him, all smooth words and polish once again. 

        "But of course, Shido-"

         _No honorific,_ Loki snickered, and Akechi watched as Shido's face tightened just slightly.  _Oh this idiot's going to fall hard._

        "With the elections coming up, you'll likely be a member of the Diet soon," the director continued with a slight chuckle. "You're steadily climbing upwards, why would I not meet with you?"

        "Well I'm glad someone is willing to look past all of the scandal." Shido looked to Akechi. "We'll be working through the political aspects of things for most of the night, but the young man here doesn't have much time tonight, so I would ask that we get to the matter with him first."

        The director frowned at him, and Akechi smiled a polite smile with none of Loki's teeth. It was easier because his father was showing him mercy for once and getting him out of the conversation before it dragged. "It's nice to meet you, sir." He bowed. "My name is Goro Akechi." 

        "This young man is a blossoming detective who helped me clear my name of all of those scandals," Shido continued as Akechi straightened. "His talents would be better used in your service, however, cleaning up all that is rotten in the city."

        "Erm, yes. He is very young, however." The Director's frown deepened. "Too young for a job such as detective. You realize what you're asking, yes?"

        "I do realize what I'm asking," Shido replied patiently. "But his age is not a measure of his ability. I would just like you to keep that offer in the back of your mind while we discuss my other offers." Shido looked to Akechi. "On matters of information, the boy does not disappoint."

        "I am sure you could find a use for me, Director." Akechi gave the man another small smile. "At the very least having me in your debt for giving me this job."

        "I will consider it. But for now, Shido, may we speak in private?"

         _And there's the dismissal,_ Loki hummed as Shido gave a small nod.  _Maybe he'll actually be clever for once._

        With that Shadow? Akechi doubted it, and he bowed one last time, slipping away from the party and into the shadows so that he could step back into the Metaverse. 

 **_Octo_ ** _**ber 17th, 2013**_

_**Early Morning** _

**M.S.:** I continue to wonder how such a spineless man got into such a powerful position.

 **M.S.:** Are you awake?

 **Me:** Yes sir.

 **M.S.:** Excellent. It would seem our new ally needs some convincing. Could you handle that?

 **Me:** Of course. As we discussed?

 **M.S.:** Yes. And you know full well what to do should negotiations fail?

 **Me:**  That Shadow will be the first moving target for my new gun.

 **M.S.:** Good. Have it done by the end of the week.

**_8 messages deleted_ **

**_October 17th, 2013_**

**_Afternoon_ **

         _This thing is ugly,_ Robin Hood clicked his tongue while Loki roamed around the new basement curiously. It  _was_ a lot nicer than the last one had been in. It was big, didn't smell like goat cheese, and was soundproofed enough for a lot of privacy. 

        Also soundproofed enough for him to practice shooting, which was likely why he was down here. "It is," Akechi replied, looking down at the empty revolver in his hands with a sigh. "But it will make assassinations easier without me risking life and limb because swords are inefficient." The look on Shido's face had been priceless when he'd told him letter for letter what had happened with Wakaba, and he'd been given the gun two days later. An investment, his father had explained.

         _It was efficient enough,_  Loki grumbled.  _He's just worried about his new toy getting anymore broken._

        "I know what this is, Loki." It was Akechi's turn to click his tongue, and he sat down began reloading the gun, carefully wiggling his toes. The middle one on his right foot still stung a little, but it was nothing compared to the pain he'd felt in the bunker before the damn place had faded. And it looked like it had healed nicely. "It will still be nice to have more options."

        "Akechi-kun?"

        Oh. Akechi placed the gun on the table beside him, moving back out into the main room of the basement, giving Yamamoto his best polite smile. It grew just a little bit warmer when he saw the tray of sandwiches the man was cautiously setting on the table. "Oh, thank you."

        "Course," the man replied, nerves evident in his voice. "You settling in alright?"

        Akechi nodded. "Just fine. I appreciate the hospitality."

        The man nodded, and then practically fled up the stairs.  _You know,_ Loki remarked.  _I wouldn't mind staying here. Fear is better than condescension in my book._

"I don't think it is in mine," Akechi replied softly. It would explain the slight regret in his chest as he watched the door close. He sighed, picking up a sandwich. Maybe he should go find Yamamoto's Shadow. If it was anywhere near as idiotic as the SIU Director's, he might feel less bad about his existence being so terrifying. He was actually looking forward to confronting the man, and wasn't certain if he should be happy or sickened by that. This was blackmail, after all.

**_October 18th, 2013_**

**_Evening_ **

        The door opened, closed. A couple steps into the room, and then there was a startled sound. "I recommend not making a scene," Akechi remarked softly, not taking his eyes off of his book, Robin Hood's warmth like a halo around his shoulders. "It would be bad for both of us."

        There was silence for a moment, and then a heavy sigh. "Akechi, right?" Akechi gave a faint nod. "How did you get in here?"

        "I have my ways." Akechi closed his book, looking up at the man, keeping his expression blank and remaining seated on the couch for now. It was easier to do it this way, to pretend to be the emotionless killer his father wanted . "I have to say, not having cameras within the office seems like a design flaw... but then, you have your reasons for always having them turned off, don't you?"

        Director Kinzo's face paled just slightly, and Akechi saw his jaw stiffen. "I don't know what you're talking about."

        "You're trying to solidify your position but too frightened to make any definitive moves, Director," Akechi replied flatly. "The yakuza? Really?"

        "How do you-"

        "Again, I have my ways." Akechi stood, setting the book on the couch. "Shido-san is mildly insulted that you're looking to such small sources when he has given you an offer to keep your position on a silver platter."

        "What, through you?" Director Kinzo scoffed. "I know what he's doing, he's trying to show the public that we no longer need Naoto Shirogane as the Detective Prince because you'll be replacing him. While Shirogane was... difficult, and I'm grateful he's gone-"

        "His eyes were far too sharp for any of our liking," Akechi finished quietly. "You can't keep him out of Tokyo forever, not without questions, and your grip on the SIU is unstable. There are rumors. You're paranoid that someone will find out."

        He was getting stared at, the director looking like a shocked toad at this point before he managed to snap out of it. "You're making... baseless accusations-"

        "Oh, that wasn't an accusation. Honestly, aren't you supposed to be a lawyer?" Akechi shook his head. "It's obvious that you shouldn't have this position- and that  _is_ an accusation."  _Your Loki is showing,_ Robin Hood warned, and he took a breath, carefully releasing it before looking the now slightly shaking man in the eye. "The point being, Director, that Shido-san and I both know you forged documents to gain your position." The color drained from the man's face. "Now. With that in mind, will you consider the offer again?"

        The director gaped at him. "This-this is blackmail," he finally said, words slow, tone incredulous.

        "No, actually." Akechi shook his head. "I thought the same yesterday, but you should count yourself lucky you have a crooked past that Shido-san can hold over you. Otherwise, I don't believe he would have even approached you."

        "Excuse me?"

        "This is an ultimatum, Director. We've already asked nicely. He only asks nicely once." Akechi looked him in the eye again. "I need this job, and Shido-san needs Shirogane to remain out of Tokyo so he is not poking his nose into our business. If there was even a chance that your moral code could get us into trouble- well. We'd have him right back on our heels, now wouldn't we?"

        "You're talking in circles. I'm not seeing the upside to having forged documents," Director Kinzo growled.

        "Sir. If we could not approach you and the SIU actually began looking into us, you would be quite dead."

        Silence. The director somehow grew even paler as they stared at each other, and Akechi forced himself not to swallow the ash in his mouth. He didn't like the man, he reminded himself. "As a matter of fact, I have orders to kill you should you not call Shido-san with confirmation that you will be joining our cause by Friday so he can explain everything that he did not on Monday. It would be very,  _very_ easy to make your death look like a heart attack."

        "...You lot are actually behind Wakaba Isshiki's death."

        "I told you Shirogane was too sharp." Akechi gave a small smile.

        The director sucked in an angry breath, eyeing him a  _lot_ more warily now, and while it made Loki skip about his feet in pleasure, the ash in his mouth seemed to multiply. It was getting hard to breath around it. "Fine, damn you. But why do you need this job?"

        "In case I ever get caught with a gun." Akechi shrugged, his smile remaining plastered there. "It would raise a lot of questions if I wasn't a detective, yes?"


	15. Sliding into 2014

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> January through April. Akechi gets a job.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disjointed and time-skippy, but Akechi's pace is train heading for wreckage so a lot happens. XD Hope you enjoy!

**_January 1st, 2014_ **

**_Early Morning_ **

        "New Year, Schmew year, my mom is dead and fireworks are still going off," Futaba's Shadow grumbled, swinging her legs on the bench she and he were both sitting on. "Emmy-san hates me cuz I'm weird and I killed my mom."

        "You didn't kill your mother, Futaba-chan," he refuted quickly, automatically. "You know that you didn't."

        "Everyone says I did even though they should all know I didn't." She looked away. "Would I really know if she hated me as much as she said she did?"

        "I did, and my mother actually killed herself." It got easier to say every time he did it, because it made her look up at him. It put some hope back into those big golden eyes hiding behind those glasses. "This was not your fault."

        She sat there for another moment, then scooted a bit closer. "Did you know?" she asked hesitantly. "That most online games have a big sort of event for New Year's? Like all of the normal folks do?"

        "I didn't." He didn't play video games, after all. "Was there an exciting one this year?" She nodded, managing a smile, and he gave her one through his visor. Glad to see that she was still fighting and not in the prison yet even if she was definitely far too deep in Mementos for comfort.

**_January 1st, 2014_ **

**_Morning_ **

        "Akechi."

        His name along with the rapping on the table startled him into sitting up, blinking rapidly at Yamamoto. He felt oddly stiff, and groggy, and- oh, he realized as he looked at the books and his new laptop scattered to the left of him, he'd fallen asleep after finishing his studying for the entrance exam, hadn't he? "Muh?" He winced as he felt Robin Hood cringe and Loki groaned sleepily.

        "Shido-san asked me to tell you that he wants to meet up with you tomorrow afternoon- three o'clock at his new office in the Diet Building." Yamamoto set a tray with rice and eggs on the table. "He said he tried to call you but didn't get a response."

        "Given my phone is on the other side of the room, I'm not surprised I didn't hear it," Akechi muttered, rubbing his face. Crud, he was going to have to apologize for this, wasn't he? He should have slept when he got back, but he always had trouble sleeping after speaking to Futaba's Shadow. No rest for the wicked, he supposed. "I suppose I know what I'm doing today. Thank you for the food."

        "Of course." Yamamoto stared at him for another moment, seeming to hesitate, and then turned around and headed back up the stairs. Akechi watched him go, and then pulled the tray over to himself, picking up the chopsticks and beginning to eat. 

         _Scouting out the Diet Building, then?_ Loki yawned.

        "Sounds like it," Akechi murmured. "Should be interesting at least."

**_January 1st, 2014_ **

**_Afternoon_ **

         _UHHHHHH-_

 _This is new,_  Robin Hood added mildly.

        "New, yes. Creepy, definitely. What the hell is that?"

        There was the equivalent of a shrug from both of his Personas and Akechi studied the dark spire of black intersecting thorns that eclipsed where the Diet Building should be. This was... problematic for his meeting with his father tomorrow. He paced closer, looking around, and then frowned at the tiny moat around the place. That was... "Lake water," he murmured, staring down at the storm just below the surface. 

         _Oh, oh! Do you think it's a fully-fledged Palace?_ Loki asked, practically perched on his shoulder now. _Now that I look at it closer, I can kind of see what Isshiki was talking about. This dome is separating someone's consciousness from the general public's because if theirs was to mingle it would be super destructive. Lots of warped thoughts everywhere._

 _I think that's what this is,_ Robin Hood agreed.  _There should be an entrance, head around to where the doors would be._

        Akechi did as he was told, walking around the spire of dark thorns, bare hand on his hip. He was never outfitted in his armor and weapons when he was at the surface level of the cognitive realm. Though, he thought as he studied a hole in the center that pulsed with gentle red light, and the sound of... waves.... reached his ears, that might be changing real fast here. "Just jump through, then?" he questioned.

         _Yeah!_

 _Seems our best course of action,_  Robin Hood agreed.  _Be cautious regardless. We've never seen a full palace._  Akechi nodded, took a breath, and then jumped through the pulsing light.

        There was the same wavering feeling he got whenever he entered the Metaverse slid past him and over his skin, and then his black books were hitting a wooden floor. He blinked through his visor at the sight of the Diet Building in front of him, then glanced behind because he was still hearing waves.

        His jaw dropped, red eyes becoming almost perfect circles.

**_January 1st, 2014_ **

**_Evening_ **

        "Alright, boy. What was so important that you had to text me about it?"

        Skyscrapers, just calmly poking out of the waves, the mid-afternoon sun making all of where Tokyo used to be shining a clear blue. The waves had been calm, the ship he'd stood on sailing smoothly.

        "Thank you for calling me back, sir. I just thought I ought to let you know of a few complications I found with getting into the Diet Building in my usual way."

        Masked adults tittering in the main, grand hall that he was fairly certain wasn't in the real Diet Building. It was too lavish. He'd looked up pictures of cruise ships online before Shido called him in response to his text, found it was reminiscent of the Titanic, which made Loki laugh and him want to cry. Was he near hysterics over this? A detached part of him that he wasn't sure belonged to him or his Persona's said that he probably was. How many of him were there now?

        "Complications, you say?" Shido's tone had become slightly sharp, a knife against Akechi's temple. "Did you not say that you had no trouble getting into places?"

        Strong shadows patrolled the lush halls, Akechi had to stay on his toes, he'd fought a couple and exhausted himself, but he'd been too disturbed to rest once he'd gotten home. Emotions... emotions were so draining, so inconvenient. He just needed to stop, really.

        "The places in question are generally the same as they are in reality, sir, the Diet Building is not. That being said, I looked around the area and I believe I found where your office would be. I just didn't want to test anything because I have no idea where the cameras are in the building."

        There had been so many darumas. Golden statues, heads at the ends of the banisters, doorknobs. All of them with one eye filled. A wish... a promise... a vow.

        "The Diet Building is different in the Metaverse than it is in reality?"

        Oh was that what they were calling it now? He doubted that was in Isshiki's research. Speaking of which... "Have you read much of Isshiki's research, sir? If so, did she ever mention Palaces?"

         _This place will eat me alive, she said. I will no longer be the same, she said._

        "...She did. She said it was manifestation of a person's desires given physical shape in the cognitive realm, generally tied to a specific place. She described it as a place that the person would haunt should they die, a distorted view on the world."

        What a twisted, twisted joke his life was, he'd thought as she'd stared at the statues that were not darumas. All of their lives were. 

        "Well, the Diet Building is a Palace. Which makes navigating it extremely hard. Even so, you are my employer and thus it's easier to find your office-"

        "Wait, boy." The sharpness in his tone left completely as the realization hit. "You just accidentally stumbled into... into my head, didn't you?"

        His father was always so eager to remind him that he was not an idiot. Not an idiot. Don't do anything rash, Goro Akechi. Not if you don't want to drown. 

        "Yes sir. It would seem I did. With that in mind, are you certain that you want me coming into your office in the usual fashion, or do we need to figure something else out?"

         _We've made a grave miscalculation. Mother was right._

        "I will postpone tomorrow's meeting while I consider this. Please keep your phone on hand this time."

        "Of course, sir, my apologies for this morning."

         _Am I on your ship, Father? Or am I out there, drowning with the millions in the sea of your ambition?_

**_January 15th, 2014_ **

**_Morning_ **

        "It seems you were correct about my office at least." Shido looked a bit uncomfortable. Good. He should be, though a part of Akechi that was a lot more Loki than Robin Hood desperately, desperately wished that he wasn't as smart as he was. Blind pride would be so much easier to kill. "And that you passed your entrance exam with flying colors."

        "I am glad not to disappoint, sir," Akechi replied. It was getting easier to smile at him. Easier to bury his true feelings under lies and mimicry. His hatred still festered like an untouched wound, but his mask was the bandage and the clothing that would hide it. Even if that hatred grew stronger every time he stepped foot onto the cruise ship, every time his father told him to kill another person. It was all fine if the man could not see it. Akechi would nurse it alone. It only fueled Loki's fire and made Robin Hood's barriers stronger. "So I start my first year of high school in April, then?"

        "Yes. I expect good behavior and top marks, as does Director Kinzo," Shido told him sternly. "You're a student detective, just like Naoto Shirogane. It is your job to spread confusion by solving cases you cause and make everyone think that they don't need their star detective. Meanwhile I will be over here on the political side of things putting together my campaign for prime minister."

        "Yes." Akechi tilted his head. "All of this to get you to that seat. Nothing less."

        Shido frowned. "Of course, that's the goal."

         _Nothing less,_ Robin Hood muttered, and it sounded like a bitter oath. 

**_January 15th, 2014_ **

**_Afternoon_ **

        "What was the point of that?" Akechi asked, eyes closed as he laid on the worn couch Yamamoto had brought down yesterday afternoon. There was a finger paint hand-print on the back of it. Yamamoto's daughter, because apparently some woman found his timid nature endearing enough to marry him and have a family. He wondered how long this man would last before he saw the sea of ambition behind Shido's sunglasses, and Akechi had to create another orphan.

         _That stunt in our meeting this morning?_  Robin Hood asked.

        "Yes. That."

         _Just letting him know that we won't follow every order._  Akechi's eyes blinked open.  _Most of them, yes. We can't get out of every death. Just... if something comes up, if his pride blinds him, we are within our rights to refuse._

        "He's smart." He closed his eyes again. "I don't see when this will come up, but... I suppose it's nice to have a safeguard."

**_February 15th, 2014_ **

**_Afternoon_ **

        Memento. Noun. An object kept as a reminder or souvenir of a person or event. "Do you really think that people can be summed up in one item?" Akechi asked Futaba, his head resting on his crossed arms, foregoing sitting on the bench so that he could actually lay his head down. Loki was wrung out and irritable from doing so much today, and Robin Hood was just... tired. But the calmer Persona always seemed to be so nowadays unless something caught his attention. "An entire life's experience, in an heirloom?"

        "I mean, people have mementos for a reason," she replied, swinging her legs again as she looked down him, concern in her golden eyes. He could taste more ash on his tongue. He wished she wouldn't do that. "I don't think of it as a summary. More like a set of notes to bring back all of the memories, those experiences that you had with them all laid out neat in your head."

        "...What would it be for your mother, do you think?"

        The Shadow paused, tilting her head. There was a moment of silence, and then- "Her curry," she replied firmly. "It doesn't matter who makes it, so long as they make it right. She wasn't a cook, but she is the one who created the recipe. And it was the best thing anyone has ever tasted."

        She sounded so proud of Isshiki. It made his chest ache, and his mouth still tasted like ash. "Not her research, huh?"

        "Her research was her pride and joy, and it's what the world  _should_ know her for." Futaba puffed her cheeks out. "But she's also my mom. And my mom was proud of her curry recipe, because I loved it and so did everyone else that her friend she collaborated with served it to."

        When Akechi ate dinner that night, it all still tasted like ash, and he wondered if Isshiki's curry would taste different. Probably not. It was for her daughter, not for him.

**_March 2nd, 2014_ **

        The whispers weren't very quiet, but Akechi did have rather good hearing both in the Metaverse and out. He didn't care much about what he heard, it was the same in both worlds. Loki hissed that they were better than the adults who apparently had nothing better to do than badmouth the one teenager in their midst that was beginning to solve the most baffling cases more quickly than any of them. As if they'd never seen a prodigy in their lives.

        He sat as straight at his desk as any of them, he did the necessary paperwork just like all of them, he was polite and firm, and good to the public just like all of them. He'd lied his way in, yes, the rumors of him only getting in because of money and sponsors were somewhat true, but that only solidified the fact that he  _belonged_ here. An honest man in the police force and the lawyer firms was a diamond in the endless sea of coal. The rest of them may not have had literal claws in their subconscious, but Akechi could still imagine them.

        People were hypocrites and Mementos grew deeper, invading the surface in the form of Palaces by the day. Akechi felt guilt about a lot of things, but his  _job_ was not one of them. Especially when he could use his powers to help out those in need, just a little. It made Robin Hood happy, helped him sleep at night when he saw people's lives improve marginally by his actions rather than crash down around them with a single shot of his gun.

**_March 25th, 2014_ **

**_Afternoon_ **

        "You're getting pretty good with that thing, aren't you?"

        "Oh, Yamamoto." Akechi turned to give the man hovering in the doorway to the shooting range a small smile. He'd been practicing the friendly, disarming smile. Director Kinzo said he would be a lot more useful to the police force and to Shido if his expressions weren't quite so... dead. Which they apparently were. "I didn't hear you come down."

        Yamamoto sighed softly. "I came to ask how preparations for your transfer were going."

        "Oh, to my apartment?" Akechi placed the gun back in its holster, dropping the smile. It really was getting easier to hold. To use. The kicks didn't feel quite as damning anymore, and though he loathed the fact that he was getting used to all of this... he was. He was, and it was a lot easier to fake actual expressions because the mimicry felt almost as tangible as his irritation at the world nowadays. He was a character, a detective, a sensation that grew . "It's going well. I should be moved in by April, then you won't have to worry about being tied to me anymore."

        Yamamoto exhaled. "I'm more worried about my wife finally finding out about you. Regardless, it's a relief to hear that preparations are going well. I don't understand why Shido couldn't keep you in his own basement- I don't mind you being here, but-"

        "You don't want her and your daughter involved in this at all. I understand." Akechi gave a slight shrug. He didn't mind Yamamoto either. He wasn't a good man, but he wasn't bad either. Just... a coward. A talented coward who had made the wrong deal. Much like Akechi himself. "And I'm certain that Shido-san has better things to keep in his basement than his vagrant assassin."

        "You're hardly a vagrant anymore," Yamamoto replied with an awkward chuckle. "You've got a job and all... I'll uh, I'll come down sometime this evening." 

        "Got it." Akechi waited until he heard the basement door close to take out the gun again and begin shooting. Bulls-eye. Bulls-eye. Bulls-eye. "Should I be proud?"

         _Can you be anything else?_  Loki asked, sounding genuinely curious.

        "I might be," Akechi replied softly. "Because I don't feel proud."

        Loki didn't ask what he felt. Which was good, because he didn't have an answer.

**_March 30th, 2014_ **

**_Morning_ **

        "Welcome home, guys," Akechi whispered. It was a nice apartment. A lot nicer than what he and his mother had lived in an eternity ago. Shido had paid for six months in advance, which was plenty of time to save up enough money. 

        Loki swirled around the white walls and the essential furniture while Akechi moved in, sitting down on the couch. Robin Hood also poked about curiously, the most interest he'd shown in anything since January. It was a lot more... devoid of personality than Yamamoto's basement, but that was a given. At least here, he could just... be. He could walk in and out without having to worry about running into palaces. He could begin building a life, even if he was still chained to Shido's whims. His contract, his gun in his new, false-bottomed briefcase. He sighed softly, taking his few bags and beginning to unpack. 

**_April 11th, 2014_   
**

        "Wasn't he on TV the other day?"

        "Yeah, at the crime scene... must have been a witness."

        Loki snorted at their remarks while Robin Hood gave a soft sigh. Akechi ignored his new classmates, though it was... odd, being noticed. He'd clawed his way into being at the police station, he didn't plan to do the same for school. 

        "Was it the first day for you too?" he asked Futaba that evening after meeting so many teachers and even more classmates, noting which ones stared at him more and which ones didn't. 

        "No, cuz I moved again." She was all curled up on the bench, glaring at the ground. "I'm teaching myself because all of my relatives won't let me go to school and learn. And... and that's fine. I don't need to go to school to learn. I have the Internet!"

        "Well, you are certainly smart enough for that." He frowned. "Still, they should let you go to school..."

        "It's okay, I'll figure something out." She gave him a bit of a grim smile. "Things aren't that bad yet. Like Mom always said- keep on trucking and eventually you'll find something worthwhile."

        "Your mother was a wise woman." Ah, there was the ash again. He'd almost missed it. While guilt felt awful, at least he  _felt_ it.

        "I know."

**_April 30th, 2014_ **

**_Morning_ **

        "Excuse me, Akechi-san?"

        Akechi blinked at the professional honorific, looking up from his new laptop to see an unfamiliar woman staring down at him. Well, he'd seen her around, actually, but they'd never spoken. He offered her a friendly smile. "Oh, "Akechi-kun" is fine, I've gotten a bit too used to everyone calling me that... I don't believe we've met. How can I help you?"

        "Akechi-kun it is, then." She returned his smile with a small one of her own, and it definitely looked sincere. Okay, interesting. That was also rare. He knew full well people didn't like him here. "I'm Prosecutor Sae Niijima, and I'd heard that you'd just finished your last case. If you're open for a new one, I'm currently trying to get legal information on a robbery case. A detective would be appreciated."

        She... she was giving him work? Robin Hood came to the forefront of his mind more hastily than he ever did with Shido in his... multiple meetings he'd been in since the start of the year... and Akechi slowly blinked. "I am just finishing up the report for my last case, yes. But are you certain that you'd like to work with me and not one of the senior detectives?"

        "Your work speaks for itself, and while I don't wish to overwhelm you, I do believe that your talents could be far more utilized by the force as a whole." Her smile grew a bit warmer. "The Director has personally vouched for you, and it would be nice to work with what seems to be the best of the best at the moment."

         _Did our heart just skip a beat?_  Loki exclaimed.

         _I say we accept,_  Robin Hood said, something warm in his tone for once.  _It's not like we have any work on the detective front for awhile._

        "W-well, if you're certain-"

        "I am." Niijima extended her hand. "Partners for the time being, then?"

        Akechi looked at the hand extended to him, and then nodded, giving her the brightest, most photogenic beam he'd ever managed. "Sounds good to me. I'm sure working together will be a pleasure."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you read this and thought "Wait the continuity's weird," congratulations, you are absolutely right. I got dates wrong, it's actually 2014 and the last few chapters have been in 2013. Mistakes have been made, so some edits will be made to earlier chapters. Akechi is in his first year of high school, I'm just reeeeally bad with numbers and just barely realized that I also have no concept of time.
> 
> So. Chapter plus edits next time. Hope you're enjoying regardless of my author slip-ups, and thank you so much for reading. XD


	16. Niijima

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akechi and his relationship with the Niijima sisters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't write anything other than suffering or it takes longer than two weeks. :D But I hope you enjoy this somewhat more lighthearted chapter. Somewhat being the operative word, there.

**_May 30th, 2014_ **

**_Evening_ **

        "Thank you for your help, as usual, though I'm a little surprised at the director's willingness to have you looking at crime scenes." Akechi blinked as she began talking, looking up from his food. This sushi had taste, and it tasted  _really_ good. Niijima was frowning slightly at him, but it wasn't a disappointed or angry look.  _Concern,_  Robin Hood supplied. "I understand that your youth is no measure of your ability, but you're still in high school- you shouldn't have to look at situations that would make a grown man sick."

        "The scenes do bother me," he admitted before taking another bite. He wasn't _that_ emotionally stunted, seeing a dead body was still rather... disturbing. Not enough to make him sick, and the thought wasn't putting him off his food, but the feeling was still there. "But it is part of the job, and someone must do it."

        "Hmm." Niijima picked up her own chopsticks. "You are one of the station's best, which is why I'm taking advantage of your work as well. I just wish that I could get your help with something other than a murder case."

        "You did earlier this month." Akechi smiled at her. It was really, really easy to smile at her. If she'd taught him anything, it how to make his fake, pretty smiles look incredibly authentic. "This is your first time asking for my assistance on a murder case, Niijima-san, and that was only after seeing that everyone else already does it anyways. Besides, this-" he tapped the sushi tray with his chopsticks. "More than makes up for it."

        Her gaze softened, her slight smile appearing. "If you insist. I may have to take you out for dinner more often if I do make you work late- you've school in the morning, don't you? How are your classes going?"

        "Classes are going well." He'd always liked learning, after all, and keeping his grades up was part of the bargain with Shido. One of the easier parts of his bargain with Shido. 

        "Good, keep it that way." She nodded. "You have a job now, which is impressive, but everyone will have to take you seriously once you're older and have truly shown them you belong. Just keep that in mind."

        "...Yes, Niijima-san. Thank you."

**_June 2nd, 2014_ **

**_Morning_ **

        "Things improving at all on your end?" Akechi asked, pacing around the bench.

        "Ehhhh not much." Futaba stuck her tongue out. She had a new preferred way of sitting, all curled up on the bench in a crouch, her hands resting on her knees. "They're gonna move me again. Apparently the current cousin isn't treating me right, so off to the next one I go."

        He was shocked they hadn't just thrown her into an orphanage yet. "I'm sorry to hear that."

        "You haven't hurt anyone today." 

        He stopped short at that comment, turning to face her, blinking. "Pardon?"

        " _Pardon_ ," she repeated, flashing him a small, cheeky little grin before her face grew serious. "You're always so tired when you visit, it's obvious that you're out doing stuff. You told me you're the one... who killed Mom... so..."

        "Ah." He felt his Personas both shrink just slightly at her words, the ash back in his mouth. "I..."

        "Don't look at me like that." She shrugged. "Just... thanks for visiting me. Thanks for continuing to remind me that it wasn't me even though you don't have to. I'd be in a real bad way if you didn't keep insisting on keeping the truth alive."

        He stared at her for another moment, then swallowed the ash in his mouth and gave her a slight bow. "All of your suffering is because of me," he replied, voice hoarser than it should be. The mask. He had to wear the mask, even though she knew all of him and his thousands of regrets that he had taken this path and had pulled her into it. "It's the least I can do, Futaba-chan."

**_June 2nd, 2014_ **

**_Evening_ **

**Niijima:**  What are you doing tonight?

 **Me:**  As opposed to most nights...?

 **Niijima:**  It's your birthday today, is it not?

 **Niijima:** Makoto mentioned seeing a cake in the store that was rather impressive and I just realized that I overheard a different sort of buzz about you today.

        "...Little sister," Akechi identified the name "Makoto" after a moment of thought because it was easier to process than being yanked out of his exhausted slump on the couch. The conversation with Futaba and all of the work he'd done today plus the interview about the case he'd most recently "solved"- god he  _hated_ acting dumber than he actually was- had not been great. He'd had better birthdays, though he didn't want to go over them because "better" was not a high bar. He studied his phone, struggled to remember his usual dynamic with Niijima, and then began typing.

 **Me:**  Are you offering to get me cake, Niijima-san?

 **Niijima:**  Heh, perhaps. As an apology for not wishing you a happy birthday earlier.

 **Me:**  You really don't have to.

 **Niijima:**  Are you working tomorrow?

 **Me:**  Yes, after school.

        He didn't even have to check. He had his schedule memorized at this point, he was just waiting for the next time the higher-ups changed it on him. They hadn't done it for about two weeks now, which was a miracle. It usually switched up every few days.

 **Niijima:** I'll bring you a small cake and a cup of coffee then.

 **Niijima:** With as hard as you work, you've definitely earned both.

 **Me:**  That's very kind of you, thank you.

 **Niijima:** A small cake is no issue. Happy birthday.

         _I sense another impending food addiction,_ Loki remarked.

         _I don't think so,_  Robin Hood responded.  _We've always been fond of sweet things. It's just... we haven't seen a reason to get them recently._

        "If they taste like they should, like sushi does, then I think we're going to have a lot more sweets in our future," Akechi hummed. "Might want to get that bike after all. I have the money with all the work at the station, and I've always wanted to learn how to ride."

**_June 3rd, 2014_ **

**_Afternoon_ **

        "I don't think I've ever seen you eat anything quite that fast," Niijima chuckled, and Akechi blushed darkly, fiddling with his fork and purposely staring at his now empty plate. "I take it that you like that type of cake, then?"

         _I mean, it tastes good?_  Loki muttered.

        "Yes," Akechi replied, clearing his throat and doing his best to banish the blush. It was harder than usual, it was odd to be feeling an emotion other than guilt or irritation. Embarrassment was inconvenient but this... well, it seemed appropriate, but more than anything he was  _pleased._ Pleased and flustered and all sorts of things that he'd never really felt before. "It was quite... quite good. Thank you again."

        "Of course, Akechi-kun. I'll come back to see you the next time I need help."

        "Always a pleasure to be of assistance." And it was. It truly was and that was all sorts of strange and wonderful.

**_April_ _10th, 2017_**

**_Morning_ **

        "Sae Niijima was disturbed by you being at murder crime scenes?" Naoto tilted her head. "Is that why you began to leave them well enough alone unless they were related to a psychotic break?"

        "That's not the reason, though it did put a bit of pressure on Shido and Director Kinzo," Akechi replied with a slight shrug. "My presence at crime scenes began to be limited to PR because I was actually quite good at it. I knew how to talk to a seething mass of people hungry for answers- it was a lot less potentially deadly than Shido if still unpleasant."

        "Unpleasant is an understatement..." She got a grim smile out of him at that comment, one that she had never seen before he'd been trapped in the Metaverse. "I do remember you being the consistent face on TV for the department, though there was about a month that you were gone from all media and police work."

        "September 2014? Yeah, I got shot in the foot." Naoto slowly blinked at those words, and a hint of amusement entered his red eyes. "It was kept off of the media as much as possible. Business opportunity gone wrong with a rather petty criminal. Were you aware of Kaneshiro?"

        "I did follow all of the aspects of the Phantom Thieves case, so yes. He was one of the many people who was funding Shido, correct?"

        "Kaneshiro got to be one of the major ones, yes. Started small, got larger. Madarame stayed small, which was smart of him." Akechi gave a soft, thoughtful hum, staring at the table. "His refusal to overstep his bounds within the Conspiracy didn't help him in the end, but you know that already."

        "You got shot in the foot... by a co-conspirator?" Naoto pressed gently. "I know we've been at this for awhile, but please focus on telling me your story as concisely as possible." 

        "Ah, right." He stiffened, looking up. "I kind of went on a tangent there..." He moved about in the chair for a moment, straightening himself out, some of the proper professionalism coming back again, the quiet presence coming back. "He was the leader of one of the many gangs in Shinjuku, I actually don't remember his name. He stepped outside of the boundaries we set and so the Director himself and I went to try and talk some sense into him." He huffed a sigh. "One of the few times Shido ever tried to parley instead of immediately shoot, and I think that this made him decide that parleying was nonsense. Long story short, the man tried to shoot Director Kinzo. I managed to subdue him while taking a shot to the foot because we definitely still needed the Director, and luckily that's the only injury I sustained."

        "And you managed to keep it quiet, too."

        "Outside of the initial circus, and repeating that the details of that case were confidential over a hundred times in the emergency room before Sae-san came sweeping in with the fury of a thousand suns, yes," Akechi replied, giving something akin to a fond chuckle. How one could laugh about being interrogated, Naoto would never know. "And I took a month away from both of my jobs while she kept me in her home."

**_September_ _5th, 2014_**

**_Morning_ **

        Akechi sat bolt upright in the bed at the knock at the door. Glancing around the unfamiliar area wildly for a moment before remembering where he was and why his foot felt like he had a trap on it. "Akechi-kun? Are you awake?"

        Niijima sounding uncertain about the whole thing was  _not_ helping his fraying nerves.  _Keep it together. You're just a little on edge with the boot on,_  Robin Hood soothed. He took a slow, deep breath, fixing his hair best he could and exhaling before answering. "Yes. You can come in."

        Niijima entered, a tray of food in one hand, her red gaze soft as she looked at him. "I'm sorry to wake you." 

        _I don't like how perceptive she is sometimes,_ Loki whined before Robin Hood shushed him.

        "It's fine, it's... I didn't even mean to fall asleep," Akechi huffed, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, I'm just...  _tired_ today."

        "There's no need to apologize." Niijima came in, seating herself on the edge of the bed and handing him the tray. "You've been going through a rather large ordeal since last night, I'm shocked that it's not affecting you in more ways than exhaustion and- well, the obvious. I can't believe they let reporters into a hospital room."

        "You know the journalists, they always find ways to sneak in." Akechi took a sip of the tea. No taste. Shame, but he supposed he was still far too stressed to really give proper attention to food. The fact that there was someone else around the space where he'd been sleeping should not bother him this much. He'd lived with other people for years before getting his apartment, his nerves were a little ridiculous. "That's not to say I don't appreciate you taking me out of there. Their questions were... draining."

        "I can imagine." He took another measured sip of the tea that tasted just like water. The warmth helped soothe his nerves, bring Robin Hood back to the forefront of his mind. He was fine. Just tired. "Well, you can stay here until that foot is healed," she told him. "I don't like the thought of you having to take care of yourself in that apartment with the boot on."

        "You've made it quite clear that an argument about the subject would not be welcome," he replied with a small nod. Even though he truly could take care of himself. 

        "I'm home, Sis!" a voice called, causing him to stiffen up slightly in surprise, both Personas coiling around him defensively as footsteps pattered over to the bedroom door. A teenage girl about his age peered in, her dark brown hair long and braided, her bangs almost in those red eyes she shared with Niijima. She nodded to him a bit shyly. "Hello, Akechi-kun."

        "Akechi-kun, this is my younger sister, Makoto..." Niijima seemed to think about this for a moment, then smiled. "You're going to be living with two Niijimas. You'd best call me Sae."

        Static from both Robin Hood and Loki. Akechi stared at her, scrambling for a response in said shocked static. "I-I mean you have a point, but you are still very much my senior, and that would be... rather cheeky of me... Sae-san. Sae-san at the very least."

        "Sae-san it is, then." Her smile was amused, she was totally laughing at him. Akechi took another measured sip of his drink, ignoring the heat in his face and slightly hunched shoulders, taking note when that brown braid retreated from the room.

**_September_ _7th, 2014_**

**_Afternoon_ **

         _Oi. Hey. Central._

        Akechi stirred, frowning at the urgency in Loki's tone though the Persona sounded groggy too. "Oh," a soft voice exclaimed, and said exclamation was let an electric shock to his half-asleep state. He forced his eyes to open slowly, looking towards Makoto as she stood far too close to the bed for comfort, her hands clasped in front of her skirt. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you," she continued. "I was just bringing in the homework that Sis picked up from your school."

        "Is Sae-san at work, then?" he asked, sitting up and frowning at his phone as it buzzed on the covers of the bed. Thank god it was facing down, he doubted that was anything that was safe for outside eyes. It never was unless it was Sae texting him. Makoto nodded, and he carefully picked up the phone, not looking at the screen just yet. "Thank you for bringing them in." He gave her a small, polished smile. "I'll do my best to get some work done on it today, I've definitely been falling behind.

        She gave a small nod, uncomfortable with small-talk and obvious in it. "You've been sleeping a lot," she offered. "But that's a good thing, since sleeping helps wounds heal faster. Muscle repair and all that..."

        He nodded, he vaguely remembered learning about that back in middle school. He was still far more tired than he'd expected, only having the energy to think about doing his homework for an hour or two at a time- it was piling up, and he did need to finish it all before going back to school. He even generally enjoyed homework, he liked learning, he just- did not have the focus or energy for it. "Still, it's perhaps a bit too much," he replied, taking the top paper off of the dresser that was in easy reach. "You have homework too, don't you?"

        "Y-yes. I'll leave you to work." She  _bowed_ just slightly to him, then practically fled the room, leaving him blinking after her and that fraying braid. 

        He didn't know why he was so fascinated with her hair- then again, when it was girls his age, he did tend to look more at their hair than their eyes, he'd just never really _thought_ about that. It was honestly starting to worry him more than the fact that she fled from him every time they didn't  _need_ to be having a conversation.  _That's for the best,_  Robin Hood remarked with regret in his tone, and Akechi slowly nodded.

**_September_ _9th, 2014_**

**_Evening_ **

        By the third day, he'd finally caught up on all of the sleep that he'd apparently been missing, and by the evening of the fourth, he'd done all of the sitting that both he and Loki could stand. Makoto had slowly been getting more comfortable with him in the house, coming in to do homework with him while Sae was at work. He definitely had homework enough for both of them to be sitting through all of those hours that Sae was gone. "I don't suppose your sister would allow me to help with dishes tonight?" he asked Makoto, closing his math textbook with a heavy sigh.

        "You just practically slept through three days," she responded, looking up at him with a startled expression. "Are you sure that you want to move so soon?"

         _Pshhh during those three days we could get away with not moving without consequence,_  Loki grumbled, sliding over Akechi's skin, making the covers of the textbooks ripple whenever he passed by them.  _Your muscles will begin to atrophy if you sit still much longer._

 _I'm not sure that's the right word for the stage we're in, Loki,_ Robin Hood muttered.

         _It's close enough!_

        "I've never been all that good at sitting still." He gave her another small smile, tilting his head. "The Director says it's one of the good things about me."

        "I suppose I can understand that... Sis will worry, though she'll probably understand if you explain it to her too."

        "I'll ask her, then."

**_September_ _10th, 2014_**

**_Afternoon_ **

        Sae was alright with him moving, thank god. The restlessness felt like it was crawling through his skin, and though she insisted that he still sit down through most of the day for now, at least he could go to other parts of the house. "Did you know that trends tend to change seasonally?" he asked from the living room floor, distracted from his laptop by Makoto fighting with her book bag and braid. It tended to get caught on things more often than not, that braid. 

        "What?" She blinked at him, obviously not comprehending, and then squeaked when her book bag dropped to the floor, sliding right off her hair. 

        "...I'm just wondering why you have such long hair when you obviously don't like it," he replied, watching her pick up the bag, and then the blush that darkened her face. 

        "It's um- that obvious?"

        He nodded, then raised a hand to his chin, palm facing down. "I know more about fashion than any self-respecting man should-" the past four days were the first time in three months that he hadn't applied any makeup to hide how little he slept at night or the annoying acne that kept showing up on his chin. "But that means that I can tell you that you would look good with a chin-length bob. Less likely to get caught on things, and if you style it right, you can keep it out of your face."

        She fidgeted, staring down at her feet. "I... I like doing braids, though. And Sis never lets me do her hair, so if mine was short..."

         _I think that this is what girls are supposed to act like?_

         _Loki, do us all a favor and never say that again._

        Akechi gave a faint shrug, ignoring his Personas, then opened a new tab and gestured her over. "I think we both have time right now. I'm pretty sure I've seen girls with bobs find unique ways to style them."

        Makoto lit up, and both of his Personas gave him nothing but static when she hurried over and sat herself right down next to him with no sign of her usual caution. There was no awkwardness for once as they looked up hairstyles and talked about them for what was not supposed to be two hours.

**_September_ _10th, 2014_**

**_Evening_ **

        "You never talk about yourself."

        It sounded like an offhand comment, but there was an undertone to it that made Akechi blink, glance at Makoto. She didn't look up from the dish that she was drying. "Pardon?"  _Pardon,_ Futaba's teasing voice echoed in his head. 

        "To Sis, I mean, you never talk about yourself unless she asks directly," she replied, setting the glass down and holding out her hand for his plate which he surrendered, picking up the next dish to rinse. 

        "She doesn't either," Akechi replied. "It's mostly about work or about you. I think she's mentioned your late father once during this entire debacle."

        "Given the circumstances, that doesn't surprise me," Makoto sighed. "Usually she refuses to talk about him at all..."

        "His passing was rather recent, from what I've heard around the station. Her reluctance to speak about it is understandable." He handed her the next bowl. "And our relationship aims to be purely professional. We speak about work, what may interfere with said work, and occasionally likes and dislikes so that we can work together more efficiently."

        When he next looked up in the silence, she was frowning at him. "Is there... a point to that?"

        It was a struggle not to put Loki into his smile. "Niijima-san, there is generally a  _point_  to everything that I do."

        Sae came back into the room, then, and Makoto asked no more questions, but the air between them was heavier than it had been this afternoon.

        "You two are getting along, aren't you?" Sae asked once he was settled in bed once again.

        "Why would we not be?" he asked, shifting under the blankets, the restlessness crawling under his skin again now that he was lying down. 

        She sighed softly, her hand twitching towards him, but it stayed in her lap. "I worry about how distant you are at times, Akechi-kun. You could stand to have some friends."

         _Friends fail us, Sae,_ Loki muttered.

         _We're a liability to anyone we don't have an excuse to be close to,_  Robin Hood added after a moment, regret softening his baritone voice.

        Akechi just smiled. "I think we get along just fine, Sae-san."

**_September_ _13th, 2014_**

**_Early Morning_ **

        Akechi blinked when he heard the door slowly open, and he looked up from the book he was reading to see... Makoto, even with his phone's flashlight pointed downward, he could see that the shadowed figure was her. She was peering in, the door open not-quite-halfway. He stared back at her in silence for a moment, knowing full well that it was long after midnight, but he could not sleep and so here he was. "Please don't tell Sae."

        She stood there staring for another moment, and then slowly closed the door. Her footsteps padding away, his Personas perched on his shoulders and alert until he turned his gaze away from the door back to his book.

**_September_ _15th, 2014_**

**_Evening_ **

        "Ten days," Makoto said softly, making him draw his gaze up from the game of chess on his phone. The small guest room was bare except for his suitcase, crutches, and his clothes for the morning. She came into the room, carefully closing the door behind her. "You've been so quiet that if it weren't for meals, we'd have hardly known you were here at all."

        "Oh, I think that may be a bit of an exaggeration," Akechi chuckled softly, though he was anything but amused. Sae had said something very similar in a more subtle fashion when she'd checked on him while he'd packing. 

        "You've shown nothing but embarrassment, curiosity and boredom during that entire time," she continued, her hands clasped again. She did that a lot. He found that he wasn't too surprised by what she was saying, either. Sae was observant, her sister was too. It was a Niijima thing. "You've taken to calling Sis by her first name just fine, but not me... and I feel like you wouldn't accept the invitation."

        "I wouldn't." He dropped the smile. "I like you, Niijima. I don't want you to think that I don't."

        "I like you too, Akechi. I just think..." she sighed, looking away. "I don't know what I think. Are you just this... _distant_ with everyone except for Sis?"

        "Simply put, yes." He looked back at the darkening screen of his phone. The phone he would not have if not for his father. So much information in his hand he had never had as a child, a gift he had literally killed for. If these two knew what he was, who he was, what he had done... Sae would never look at him again. He would have never been in this home. "It's better for everyone if I don't get too involved with others," escaped him before he could stop it, and his Personas both startled upward around him.

        "Why do you say such things?" she asked, her voice soft, and he still didn't look up at her. "I feel like when you say something negative about yourself is when you feel... real. But why?"

         _You're too perceptive, and that's not your business._

        Akechi listened to Loki's hiss, closing his eyes. "Niijima," he responded. "Do you have a goal for after school?"

        "I'm... working on my plan for it."

        Her voice was too uncertain. She wouldn't understand, but he sighed, gearing himself up to try and explain anyways. She deserved that much after putting up with him for a week and only bombarding him with questions now. "There are things I must do before I can make friends, or live normally." He opened his eyes to stare at his phone again. "If you would still like me to, when those are done, I'll call you Makoto." He glanced up just in time to catch her blink. "In the meantime, you work on what you wish and find yourself something to do with your life. Does that sound like a good deal to you?"

        She studied him for a moment, then offered a small, hesitant smile that put ash in his mouth. Ah. It had been awhile. "Yes. It does... thanks, Akechi-kun. Sleep well- or try to, anyways-"

        " _Goodnight,_ Niijima."

        Her parting giggle as she fled the room haunted him that entire night and into the next day until he was in his apartment, unpacking and slowly sliding his mask off. That... that hadn't been a bad ten days.

        But it was over now. It was over and he hoped that he wouldn't have to see the real Makoto Niijima around again anytime soon. People involved with Shido were a danger to everyone around them. 

        He still choked on the ash in his throat at the end of his very long September when he took an ill-advised detour from finding Futaba's Shadow and saw hers with the haircut they'd decided on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If Shido had hair he'd have torn it all out over this month-


	17. Parallel Paths

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A blur of time and faces.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just some interactions over the long months before Akechi gets another really big shock to his system. :) Hope you enjoy!

**_Dec_ _ember_ _24th, 2014_**

**_Evening_ **

        "May I have this dance?" 

        The voice was soft, and it startled him just enough that he whirled around instead of his usual calm turn. "Ah." It took him a moment to recognize the curly hair arranged into a coif, but he did recognize both it and those shy brown eyes. "Of course," he replied, holding out his hand to her, and together they stepped onto the floor. "I must warn you that I'm not too good at this..."

        "Neither is anyone else, that's why everyone is just box-stepping," she murmured back as they began turning around the floor. "You've made quite the name for yourself, Akechi-kun. As well as grown a lot taller. I only just barely recognized you." She gave a small giggle. "You were pretty small when we met."

        "I'm shocked you remember me at all, to be frank. That party we interacted at was over a year ago and we never even introduced ourselves." 

        "No, but sometimes that's not necessary." They passed a couple of adults. "Haru Okumura, by the way," she spoke up again once they had some modicum of privacy under the music. "I already know your name."

        "Okumura?" Akechi blinked. "Any relation to Kunikazu Okumura?"

        There was a hint of alarm in her eyes, of fear, but... not for herself. Not really. He'd seen that sort of look before on other people who were close to those in the Conspiracy. This  _thing_  his father had was really beginning to take off, the stupid organization even had a name. Even if that name was utterly unimaginative, much like the men in it. "I am his daughter, yes. Is he... um... why would you know him?"

        Because he was being an idiot and making a deal with Shido. "He is the CEO of Big Bang Burger, isn't he?" Akechi chuckled. "They've been doing well in recent years is all." He had a  _daughter_. Why would he throw himself into the Conspiracy?

        "I see." She fell quiet, seeming to contemplate this. "Are your parents here too?" she asked towards the end of the song.

        "No. I'm here on business."

        "Oh." She blinked. "On Christmas Eve?"

        "Crime never sleeps, Okumura-san," he hummed softly.

         _Ain't that the truth,_  Loki huffed.

        "I'm sorry to hear that. And I could have sworn that the man I saw you with tonight and almost a year ago looked a bit like you... not too much, but enough that he could be your father."

        _Why are teenagers more observant than the entire Conspiracy combined?_ Loki hissed.

         _You know that braincell meme...?_

 _Both of you shut up please,_ Akechi grumbled, keeping his smile in place even as he chuckled physically, verbally. Ugh, he felt like he was in two places at once again. "Oh no, he's just one of my contacts. No one has ever said that we look alike, you really think so?"

        "Mmhm." The song ended, and they split apart. "Thank you for the dance."

        "Thank you for the invitation." He bowed slightly, and they moved to different parts of the party once again.

**_Dec_ _ember_ _25th, 2014_**

**_Evening_ **

         _I hate Kunikazu Okumura. I hate Kunikazu Okumura, I hate, I **hate, I HATE-**_

        Akechi didn't bother silencing Loki as he turned the poor man they'd just defeated psychotic, his red eyes gleaming under his visor. Robin Hood was angry too. It was silent compared to Loki's seething, boiling fury, but he was angry all the same.

        They'd seen the Palace today, they knew the state of Okumura's heart. They knew this man in front of them did not deserve to be psychotic but Shido had bills to pay and Okumura had promised to fund them if they could solidify his corporation. 

        What a joke this world was.

        He wished he could build a boat to save the Niijimas, Haru Okumura, and Futaba from drowning.

**_January_ _14th, 2015_**

**_Evening_ **

        "You've been working so much recently," Sae remarked out of the blue, distracting him from the papers and sushi on the table between them.

        "Pardon?" He almost winced, but his face felt too numb to register the sudden, real emotion that had stirred from the sea of Akechi the detective, Akechi the idol. He was popular now, he could hardly go anywhere without someone knowing his name. Akechi-kun, Akechi-kun, Akechi-kun. Futaba never called him Akechi-kun. She'd taken to calling him Karasu. Like a raven. Her Huginn and Muninn in a sea of distorted screams and static.

        "You heard me." She was frowning at him. More concern. He was too tired to taste ash tonight. Things were moving, Shido called on him more often, the department needed him for PR, he was good at talking to people. "I appreciate your work, but don't let yourself burn out."

        "Of course not, Sae-san." He smiled. He had to please her, god forbid he add himself to her myriad of worries. He'd spoken to her Shadow the other day when going to see Futaba. She and Makoto were still struggling. She did have enough money for conveyor belt sushi, and he was happy to help her with any of her cases to make sure that she was able to keep herself and her sister afloat. He didn't want her drowning the way he and Futaba were. The way Futaba shouldn't be. If it wouldn't put her straight in foster care he would murder her uncle himself. "The workload is a little stacked right now, I admit it, but it'll calm down eventually. I can hold out until the school year ends at least."

        "I should hope that it calms down before then." She shook her head at him, but she was smiling now. "You're a strong man, Akechi-kun. But even the strongest men need to rest at times."

        "I know, Sae-san. The concern is appreciated."

**_April_ _7th, 2015_**

**_Evening_ **

         _For all the beauty of his damned palace, he continues to surround himself with filth._

        "Mercy!" Kaneshiro squealed like the fat pig he was, clinging to his gold and sniveling on the ground as Loki snarled over him and his disgusting weakness. A pig, a fly, it didn't matter. No matter how highly this man thought of himself and his money, he was still filth trying to cling to beauty. Akechi didn't think himself above many people. This one, though? It didn't matter how hard his palace was to get to, nor the scope of it. There was no skill here. No pride, nothing but base desire and greed. He was stupid, not completely deplorable. This? He wanted to stomp on it like the bug it was.

        "You're lucky Shido-san sees worth in you... I've never  _wanted_ to kill someone before... so congratulations on that front. Be a good boy and I won't crush you."

        "Yes, yes of course, I'm loyal to Shido! Only Shido!"

         _Pathetic,_  Loki growled as he was pulled away.

**_June_ _2nd, 2015_**

**_Morning_ **

        "I've got you, Futaba, I've got you." They sat curled together in the corner of the second-to-last floor of Mementos, Futaba's Shadow trembling in his arms, hands curled around the belts wrapped around his torso. "I've got you here, Sakura-san has you in reality. You're going to be fine."

        "He's going to be just like the rest, he's-"

        "No. Shh. He knew your mother too." The higher-ups had given this entire situation a hard stare.  _Shido_ had given this entire situation a hard stare, which had made Akechi sweat. He had made two contracts. Futaba was under his protection, and if he was forced to choose between her life and Shido... well, he'd made his choice long ago. "He knew her and he still took you in when he heard how you'd been treated. He'll be better." She sobbed into his chest, and he gently stroked his hair with his clawed glove. "You're going to be fine. Don't go into the prison. You're going to be fine."

        "This is so hard, Karasu. Why is life so hard?"

        "...I don't have a good answer to that. But we have to swim."

        He had so much to do. It was his birthday. He had ravenous fans to talk to, a million messages to answer, gifts to poke at, a dizzying response to his birth that had, before last year, never even been acknowledged. But right here, right now, this morning, holding this Shadow was far more important.

        Honestly, her getting adopted by Sakura-san was the best birthday present he could have ever gotten.

**_June_ _2nd, 2015_**

**_Evening_ **

**Sae:**  Tsk tsk

 **Me:**  Tsk tsk?

 **Sae:** I haven't seen you so overwhelmed in months.

 **Me:** Ahahaha

 **Me:**  I was not expecting this response.

 **Me:**  Popularity is odd.

 **Sae:**  Your ability to deal with such things is astounding. I don't envy you.

 **Me:** You're making me blush, Sae-san.

 **Sae:**  Haha. Happy Birthday, Akechi.

 **Sae:** Do you have any preferences on tomorrow's cake?

 **Me:** Anything is fine. Thank you so much. :)

 **Sae:**  You're welcome.

**_August_ _7th, 2015_**

**_Morning_ **

        Completely blindsiding him was an accomplishment that even Shido's best hitmen (his father insisted it was all a test. Because going outside to see a member of the Yakuza just loitering on the sidewalk was absolutely  _no_ cause for concern-) had not managed. 

        Teenagers truly were strange and terrifying creatures compared to adults, Akechi thought as he looked at the poor, blue haired boy who had slammed right into him, been laid out on his back and was now scrambling to pick everything up that was scattered around the hall. "Yusuke!" Madarame looked rather stricken, which was understandable, one of his many, many proteges had just crashed into a stranger connected to the man blackmailing him. 

        "It's fine," Akechi told him quietly, closing the binder he'd been taking notes in and crouching down to help the boy pick up all of his scattered papers. Yusuke Kitagawa, if he remembered the plaque next to the portrait in the museum correctly. All of the papers either blank or art pieces in the making. 

        "Sorry, Sensei, sorry sir," the boy said hurriedly. "I was just- I needed something-"

        "It's fine," Akechi said again, giving the boy a small smile as he handed back the rest of the papers and the boy gave a slight bow before hurrying off. 

        "I didn't even see the boy there." Madarame frowned at Shido. "When you said you were bringing someone from the police department..."

        "He was available." Shido waved a hand. "He's just here to make things official. Akechi, did you finish copying the document?"

        "Yes sir." He could see the other students poking their heads around corners, gazes sharp, wary. Interested. He hoped that his presence wasn't going to crush their own hopes about getting out of their situation. 

        "Good. Let's go, then."

        Akechi met Madarame's gaze on the way out-

         _Golden robes torn and covered in black paint, Loki snarling, if his father insisted that this be the way he released his aggression, then so be it, but he didn't want to kill this sniveling fool of a man. He mistreated the children and that made him angry but they weren't his, none of them were his, they all had safety nets save one and he cared at least a bit for that one._

And gave an imperfect, lopsided grin as the man paled before turning around. Perhaps the kids around here actually did learn from their resident idiot with a palace. He'd never had someone recognize him in real life when he'd been in their palace before.


	18. Of Gods and Demons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akechi is roughly awakened to how bleak his situation truly is. But months within seeing ruin, he also sees the solution.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hate it when it's the important chapters that kick my butt. :P It's been a long wait, but I hope you enjoy what's here!

**_April_ _10th, 2017_**

**_Early Afternoon_ **

        "So by the point Futaba was adopted by Sojiro Sakura, the Conspiracy was completely formed," Naoto summarized. "That lines up with the notes I have. Things kept growing bigger and bigger until Shido was running for the Diet."

        "Yes." Akechi sighed. "January was not a good month."

        Naoto arched an eyebrow. "Care to elaborate?"

        "Yeah. Futaba got a Palace and I met Yaldaboath."

**_January 17_ _th, 2016_**

**_Late Afternoon_ **

       "Karasu!"

        Her cry echoed in his ears as he tried to lift his head with a faint groan. A large hand shoved him back down to the cold black and red marble, and the rest of his body was held down as well. These weren't the correct guards for the prison, with their golden metal wings and lack of masks, their white vestments. Things had gotten a lot tighter down here since his last mission, but he'd blown through the regular guards in his rage. This, though... "Let her go," he muttered.

        " _That is not God's decree,_ " was the response, clear-cut and cold.

        "N-no." He grunted, glaring up at them from his visor. Robin Hood and Loki were completely exhausted from the fight. He'd made a promise. He'd made a promise and he was  _breaking_ it. "They have to come down here willingly, that's how it works." She'd been doing so much better, she'd been moving up, Sojiro had been good to her-

        " _That is how it should be,_ " a woman's voice replied, sadness in her tone. " _But free of the prison, she may hinder the happiness of others. Our God has decreed her an obstacle. She must be quarantined for the sake of others._ "

        "This is bullshit!" Akechi attempted to flail, but the hands were too big and too strong, a very real panic beginning to take hold of him. "She's not hurting anyone!  _LET GO!_ "

        "... _Shall we be rid of him? He's an anomaly,_ " the first, male voice remarked.

        " _Yes, but he has been useful, Uriel._ " she pointed out, and Akechi froze. " _He's just lashing out because he does not understand his situation._ "

        " _What would you suggest then?"_ he snapped.

        " _I am in agreement with Gabriel,_ " a third voice, more powerful than the rest added. " _Let us take him to humanity's new ruler, see if we can corral him into line."_

 _"Behave yourself, child,_ " the woman, Gabriel, cautioned, and Akechi gritted his teeth as he was hauled to his feet. This didn't sound like something he could win against and... and he should probably see all of the cards before he kept trying to play his. He quickly glanced about as he was lifted into the air. Four angels. Two of them were holding onto him, both male. There was only one woman- again, Gabriel. The final one seemed to be the one in charge, and his gaze was cold and assessing as he looking at Akechi.

        They flew downwards, fast and dizzying as the prison around them blurred. He'd never seen how deep it went- he was curious about this place, not suicidal. And recently, he'd had no time for curiosity. The only reason he was down here was because he had felt the contract he'd made unraveling. Futaba had been in danger. She shouldn't be here, and it had felt like his own Personas were behind bars again when Robin Hood had, with all the righteous fury of the sun, said that she was being dragged here against her will.

        This was the first time he had heard of a ruler for the prison... Loki had said long ago that it was the people themselves, but these angels...

        Wings snapped outwards, and the angels landed, his boots and their sandals hitting solid ground again. His legs shook slightly from gravity reinforcing itself, but the angels didn't slow down, and they dragged him forward with them at a brisk pace. Murmurs started up all around them, and Akechi stared up at the massive prison around him, the dozens upon hundreds of cells of people who lived in this city. When had it gotten so big, and- what was  _that?_

        A giant rusted cup, with veins stretching out towards the cells like tree branches. The angels forced him to his knees as they also knelt, and he stiffened up.  ** _Ah,_**  an amused, reverberating voice spoke, and he froze.

         _Oh no,_ Loki whispered.

         _Oh god,_  Robin Hood added softly.

         ** _You are correct,_**  the voice remarked.  ** _You kneel before the God that humanity has wished for, young one. I know that you bow to no one unless you choose to, but at this point, your father and I are one and the same._**

        "Only I have the right to call out that connection," Akechi snapped, and winced as an elbow hit his back.

        " _You are in the presence of the God you raised,"_ Uriel snarled. " _Show some respect._ "

        "He is not my god. I never had anything to do with creating this prison."

         ** _You and Masayoshi Shido have been immensely helpful and you will continue to be._**

 _You have no right to say that!_ Loki shrieked, blue fire flickering in Akechi's vision.  _Just because you command the rest does not mean you command us!_

         _ **Oh, but I do, human.**_ Akechi ground his teeth at how smug this- this _thing_ sounded. The whispers at the edges of his hearing weren't helping.  _Foolish boy- disturbing the peace- he's insulting the Holy Grail!-Make him leave- **As I have said, Masayoshi Shido's goals happen to coincide with my own. As do yours. You will deliver him the seat of prime minister, and then you will kill him, paving the way for my new world order. You have been building this world even in your rebellion.**_

        Loki fell silent, but Robin Hood's rage was still there. "Let Futaba go," he told it. "She doesn't want to be here. She's done nothing wrong."

         ** _She could be problematic in the future and one day everyone will be down here. I am just speeding up the process with her._**

        "She won't stay!"

         ** _Not down here, no. But Palaces do not only have to be made of greed. Only distortion, and she has plenty of that._**

        The rage drained to horror. Akechi stared up at the rusted cup and the gears, and the  _veins,_ hearing the whispers- "No." He knew what Palaces did to people, he'd seen Shido steadily grow more powerful, watched things get worse and worse, and they made them lash out. Isshiki was right, if there was one thing that affected the real world in this mess of minds, it was a Palace.

         _ **You don't mean that, boy. You wish to see the world burn as much as I do. In order for that to happen, Futaba Sakura must be locked away.**_

        "I couldn't care less about the people in these cells!" he yelled, straining against the angels' holds again. "But if I had to kill you to get her out of that palace, then I would do it in a heartbeat."

         ** _You cannot._** ** _Your self-preservation is impressive and should tell you that much._**  He felt both Robin Hood and Loki coil angrily inside his chest, blue flames still flickering in his vision.

        _"He threatened to kill the Holy Grail!"_

" _STOP!"_

_"Don't you dare touch it!"_

_"Now look what you've done!"_ Uriel snapped.

        ... ** _I see you are going to be problematic in the future._**  Golden appendages rose from the ground in the approximation of a spider, and Loki and Robin Hood both tried to surge upward, but the back of his head was hit again, and he hit the ground, the entire world spinning.  ** _You are alone and I can handle any human alone. No matter if you are an anomaly, you are not the Trickster. Still. Precautions are needed. The only man who may ever speak of me is Shido, and he knows not what is happening._**

Akechi thought he felt knives get shoved down his throat before he awoke just outside the door to the prison, his Personas trembling about as much as he was.

**_January 18_ _th, 2016_**

**_After School_ **

        "He got you good," Futaba's Shadow whispered softly. He was kneeling before her in her boat that was sailing across a sea of chaos, a mockery of knighthood and justice. Robin Hood hadn't spoken in two days and all Loki wanted to do was rage. He wasn't even in either of his Metaverse outfits. She didn't see him as a threat, after all, and they were on their way to her world. She'd unbuttoned his collar to get a better look at the golden etchings at the base of his throat and across his collarbones and shoulders. It only materialized in the Metaverse. It was unlikely that anyone would ever see it other than her.

        Her, who was dressed in all the trappings of an Egyptian queen. Her glasses were the only article out of place, she even had a golden crown that he knew was as much a chain as his new tattooed collar. "I apologize for not being able to save you, Pharaoh." How many times did have have to be taught this lesson? His hands caused others to hurt. They caused others to hurt and they did nothing else. Loki would bring about Ragnarok. Robin Hood stole from the rich to give to the poor, but he still stole. He still hurt. He still chose a side and could not serve two masters despite the dichotomy of the human condition.

        She embraced him. She already felt like a ghost. He made no move to return the gesture. "You still have it worse than I do. I have Sojiro. I wish you had me like I have you."

        "I'm not enough."

        "No. But it still helps."

        Her world was a quiet tomb in the middle of the desert. The lake underneath it all was now how he could visit her. Over the next few weeks, it lit up with electricity and the symbols of a hacker. He'd always suspected her to be Medjed. The confirmation did not stir anything like pride, especially with how dead she truly seemed. All of her urgency and fear was gone. She was far too much like him for comfort.

         _I will remain here. I will do so until I die._

        If there was any place that Akechi would die, he'd actually quite like it to be here with her. Especially during the times when the garbled cry of she who had once been a phoenix shook the entire building.

**_February_ _5_ _th, 2016_**

**_After School_ **

        "My god-given duty-"

        "That's particularly pompous," Sae remarked, one eyebrow delicately raised as she turned her gaze to Shido's speech on television. "Even for a politician."

         _I am going to strangle him._

        Akechi sipped his tasteless coffee. The lines between him and Loki were starting to get blurred. "Aren't all politicians pompous?"

         _I am going to chop off his manhood and feed it to him._

        "That is true enough. I don't suppose you have any leads on the mafia case?"

        Grimace, small shake of the head. "None. It's like their boss is a master of covering even the smallest of footprints. One could even say they leave none at all."

        She was displeased, he could see it in the way her lips tightened and her eyes narrowed, but his hands were tied by chains and spiderwebs and an entire yakuza ready to send him off to the afterlife with a twenty gun salute should he disobey. 

         _I will lead him up a staircase of hands and then let it all drag us both down on his throne I built him because you reap what you sow in this world. One by one they'll drag him under the sea where my mother, Isshiki and Futaba are waiting for us. And we'll stay there while Isshiki and Futaba ascend to the surface because if there is a god there is a heaven somewhere._

_The world is ending and I must pick my battles but this will not stand._

_I_ will  _bring Masayoshi Shido to his knees. If I can't save anyone from him, I can at least be his executioner. No spiderwebs nor chains will stop me._

        God didn't care about his chosen one, after all. He and the people only cared about the world that would come after his demise.

**_April_ _10th, 2017_**

**_Early Afternoon_ **

        "Izanami never violated any of our free will like that." She had been manipulative, yes. She had shown them what they wanted to see instead of the truth. She had almost tricked them into keeping the fog in their rage. But she had never, ever forced their hands.

        "Well good for you." It was the snippiest she had ever heard him, but given the circumstances... she couldn't blame him. "I had the Metaverse propelling me forward and Shido in reality. There were no more safe havens. There was only the goal." He closed his eyes. "There was only the goal, and then..."

        "And then?" Naoto prompted. She shouldn't have mentioned Izanami, it was far too off-topic and not important to this. She had just been... surprised.

        Akechi looked up from where he was clutching the wolf. "I couldn't defeat Yaldaboth," he replied, tears shining in his eyes again. "I didn't know it at the time, but I met the Shadow of the person that could in April. And even then I knew that he was special, I just didn't know how."

**_April_ _8th, 2016_**

**_Late Night_ **

        Akechi sat on the ledge of the prison, the heel of his boot hitting the wall with a dull thud as he surveyed the area. Things were going well according to the plan. He hadn't slipped up in his detective guise in months. Futaba's condition was continuing to worsen, but... they would both have to be patient there. If they had any hope of getting her out before world's end at all. He wasn't holding his breath. 

        "Come on, come on, you're holding up the system."

        He blinked at the shout and the dissenting grumbles of the prisoners. Were they doing it again? A scowl tugged at his lips for the first time in months, and he jumped easily off of the ledge, catching sight of a group. Four guards, one prisoner. Hmm.

       He landed on the ledge just above them, and the prisoner's head swung around, bright golden eyes meeting red. His breath suddenly caught in his throat at the  _intensity_ of those eyes, the clarity in them. It was something one didn't often see in Shadows.

        The stranger was clothed oddly too. A black top hat resting atop his fluffy black hair, a white cravat nestled between a high-collared red jacket with shoulder pads, a black waistcoat and suit pants beneath it all. Akechi cocked his head at the sight of the knee-high high-heeled boots, but any other true details were hidden underneath the chains swathed around the stranger's midsection, binding his hands behind his back together so tightly that there was probably no circulation. It would be a problem in reality.

        "You!" The guards all readied their batons, glaring up at Akechi.

        "Oh stop that." The prisoner rolled his eyes with a soft chuckle, and sent Akechi a grin that could only be described as devilish. Wild- perhaps not sinister, but there was definite trouble in that smile. "I'd like this young thief to accompany me to my cell. I'll even promise to be on my very best behavior as we walk."

        "You can't be much older than I am," Akechi commented as the guards shifted uncomfortably, the intensity of their gazes leaving. 

        "I said nothing of the sort, my good fellow." The grin only grew, and Akechi took note of the butterfly on his top hat. "We're both young. All the more reason for you to accompany me."

        "If you both promise to be on your best behavior, that can be permitted," one of the guards growled.

        "Yes, yes, of course." The stranger clicked his tongue, narrowing his eyes at the guards, his smile finally faltering. "I don't have much of a choice in the matter anyways." He turned that grin of his on Akechi again. "Come on down."

        Akechi studied the situation for another moment. The guards did generally follow the wishes of their prisoners and this one was just so... interesting. He hopped down from the ledge, landing next to the stranger, and got a nod of approval. 

        "Alright, you two, let's get a move on."

        "Yes, yes, yes, down to quarantine for me." The prisoner rolled his eyes, looking to Akechi as they all began walking down the smooth red and black stone. "They came into the upper levels of Mementos and dragged me down here.  _Terrible_ etiquette."

        "That's not usually how it works," Akechi commented. "I've only seen it happen once."

        "My condolences to that poor soul. I'm an exception, so I'm not _that_ put out about it." The prisoner winked, smirking comfortably once again. "Extenuating circumstances! Exciting new horizons! All from the comfortable padded walls of a quarantine cell. I do not plan to stay there long."

        Akechi studied the odd man- boy, he realized- again. Memorizing the way those black curls fell into those golden eyes, wondering what color they were in reality. His long fingers that weren't entirely covered by chains, the sharp angles of his chin and nose. "You'll wind up with a Palace if you're not careful."

        "Ha! A home of opulence and splendor, given to me by a system that would only see me work for my own gain?" The stranger clicked his tongue. "My good sir, I am a  _gentleman_ thief. I will take what gifts are given to me, but I also intend to share those gifts with the world." The butterfly fluttered off of his top hat, landing on his nose instead, causing him to blink in momentary confusion, the clarity in his gaze fading for a moment. For an instant, he was less mysterious entity and more teenage boy. "'Sides, you came down cause you were curious right?" He gave Akechi a gentler smile, the butterfly's wings closing and opening.

        "Uh." Akechi instantly wanted to slap himself. Goro Akechi did not stammer, he did not stutter, he did not question anything that he did. Goro Akechi was the perfect celebrity, who gave no one any reason to think that he was more or less than what he appeared to be.  No one save Futaba Sakura's Shadow (and the girl herself should he ever meet her) had the right to- to just  _look through him_ like that! He didn't even know this boy's name! He snapped his gaze away. "Yes, I came down because I was curious. You're odd."

        "If this is the crowd I'm supposed to blend in with... well." The stranger's voice was softer now as they passed through an area filled with cages. "I just can't do that."

        Neither could Futaba Sakura. Neither could a thirteen-year-old boy named Goro Fujiwara. "It never ends well," he warned.

        "That is no reason to lie down and be stomped on by those who have been given more than they deserve." The mature tone was back, and it caused Akechi to turn his head slightly again. The butterfly had moved down to the stranger's shoulder and his gaze was steady and sharp once again. "Don't you agree, my fellow thief?"

        "I'm not a thief. I'm a lot of things, but I'm not that."

        "That's a shame. It's a noble profession."

        A soft huff of laughter surprised Akechi. When... was the last time he'd actually laughed? "You sound like a Persona." Loki with a lot more restraint and a lot more sense, to be specific.

        "All of us Shadows have that potential, do we not? Ah-" 

        They'd been walking for awhile, deep, deep down into the depths. There were still people in cages scattered all about, minding their own business, but here was a door that Akechi had never seen before, a red light above it. Two girls stood in the entrance, each in a blue uniform, both wearing an eyepatch, and their golden hair was pulled up into different sorts of braids. "It's about time you arrived, Inmate!" the one with her braids in buns exclaimed, and they both looked to Akechi somewhat nervously. 

        "Our master has been waiting to begin your other self's rehabilitation," the other girl said softly. "We were wondering if you were going to arrive..."

        "I am here, wardens." The stranger bowed more deeply than should be possible with those chains, and the guards backed away, disappearing into the shadows. Leaving things to the wardens, then. The butterfly lifted off of the stranger's shoulder, and Akechi continued to study the very young wardens that he had never seen before. Funny. "I was just having this good fellow accompany me. I have never been too fond of chains."

        Braid-Buns tsked, twirling her baton. "Fine, fine. But you better get in here!"

        "You've haven't even been summoned, yet you already have so much personality and power." Braid smiled just slightly. "This is promising."

        The stranger straightened, giving the girls a brilliant smile. "I shall do my utmost to not disappoint you both." He turned his head to Akechi. "I must say goodbye here, but we  _will_ meet again."

        "Will we? Isn't the point of quarantine to keep you from the rest of the world?"

        "Weren't you listening?" He had the nerve to laugh. Distantly, Akechi realized he didn't mind at all. "I have no intention of staying here. No, we shall meet again, and when that day comes, I hope you recognize me."

        "I'd be hard-pressed to forget you." And that was the truth. The stranger laughed again, and headed into the door without another word, which closed behind him and the wardens more quickly than Akechi, in his current state, could think of another word to say. 

        Akechi blinked slowly, and then turned, looking around the area and retracing his steps. Memorizing where that cell was before stepping out of Mementos into the subway station full of normal people going about their normal lives.

        He kept walking, turning over the conversation in his mind. Wishing he'd gotten a name, but he'd never given a name either. Realizing that this was the first time in years he'd thought of Goro Fujiwara- and wondering when he'd started to think of himself as Akechi, only Akechi, as if the name his mother had granted him had never existed.

         _You sound like a Persona._

_All of us Shadows have that potential, do we not?_

        "No," he spoke softly, but he still spoke unconsciously. "No, it couldn't be."

        He heard Robin Hood click his tongue.  _We've been surprised before. Keep an eye out, Central._


	19. Court Recess

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akechi takes a much needed break from his story and meets Chie Satonaka. Meanwhile, Futaba compiles information...

**_April_ _10th, 2017_**

**_Afternoon_ **

        Shirogane tilted her head at him once he was finished recounting his meeting with Kurusu's Shadow, then glanced at her phone, then reached over and turned off the recording. "We've been at this for awhile now," she remarked, and he gave a small nod. "Answer me honestly- would you like to continue with the events in Tokyo now, or would you rather wait for that?"

        "Wait," he replied immediately. He didn't even need to think about it before grabbing the figurative life jacket she'd offered. He'd never had to vocalize those first few years to anyone in such detail, hadn't had to think about how long he'd spent drowning in a very long time. They'd gotten to one of his low points, and Kurusu and the Phantom Thieves were another trip in of themselves. There was a lot of turbulence there.

        "I see." She nodded, picking up her phone and gesturing to the tissues. "We'll pick this up later, then. Chie would like to come over to meet you properly and talk to me, if you're willing."

        Akechi paused in reaching for the tissues, one arm still curled around the wolf he'd been given. On the one hand, he already felt more wrung out than he cared to be nowadays, on the other hand, Chie Satonaka was one of the names he remembered Narukami saying over the phone, and despite how tired he was... "I'm not going to be very good company,' he replied as he drew the box closer, picked up a tissue, and wiped at his eyes again. "If she's fine with that, then I don't see why not."

        "Oh, she's going to be slightly out of sorts as well." Shirogane typed out a quick response. "Do you have a preference for ice cream?"

        "Uh..." There was a collective shrug from both Robin Hood and Loki and he sure didn't know. "No."

        "I'll tell her to surprise you, then."

-

        "The name's Chie Satonaka and I really hope you like cookie dough ice cream."

        Not the most orthodox of greetings but given the fact that Akechi usually got to know people through their Shadows or through blackmail or both, he really couldn't judge. He accepted the small container that Satonaka-san gave him with a small nod, studying the woman with chestnut hair that flared out around her head and shoulders like a halo. "I probably will. It's nice to meet you, Satonaka-san... you know my name already."

        "That I do." She gave him a faint grin, sitting down at the table. Shirogane had already set spoons out and his personas were peering at the container of ice cream with so much curiosity that he opened it to look at the contents. "I'm not usually an ice cream girl, but I hear that this is what you do after breakups, and sooo..."

        "You and Tachibana cut it off, then," Shirogane concluded, blue eyes slightly narrowed.

        " _I_  cut it off." Satonaka winced, opening her own ice cream, which appeared to be chocolate peanut butter. "It was a long time coming, but while Jusuke was being a hot and cold jerk, he was also being kinda clingy, you know? He'd have never ended the relationship."

        "I thought there was something up. Yukiko has seemed about ready to throw hands whenever his name got brought up for a couple of weeks now," Shirogane sighed. "The Inn is particularly busy today, I assume?"

        "Which is why I'm here and not there." Satonaka gave a slight shrug. "I'm not even that...  _upset_ anymore, y'know? I just didn't want to be alone after that mess. I did it in person because that's my standard and he didn't take it well even though I'm pretty sure he saw it coming too."

        "Of course." Shirogane opened her own ice cream and Akechi took a cautious bite of his. He'd had ice cream before of course, he just generally preferred cake. This tasted really good, though. It had been- he didn't even remember the last time he'd had something sweet. Maybe it would come back to him while he was finishing his confession to Shirogane, he was too tired to look into it now. "How's everything else going?"

        "School's school." Satonaka shook her head, digging into her ice cream. "And given the fact that I'm paying a lot for something I'm not enjoying, I think I'm just about done with it. For real this time. Everything was given to me by this town, it's about time I actually started working on my goal to give back to it instead of wasting time in a classroom."

        "What would you prefer to be doing, Satonaka-san?" Akechi asked before he realized that he was doing so, his Personas still both present and still curious. It wasn't just the ice cream they were focused on, then.

        She blinked at him, seeming just as surprised by the question as he was, then huffed a soft laugh. "I want to open a dojo in Inaba," she replied. "We haven't got one yet, see, despite the fact that there's definitely interest. My parents wanted me to go to college before trying anything so risky, and I listened, but at this point it's pretty clear to me that more school is not what I want."

        "Well, that just brings you back down to the rest of us. I'm sure that your job will still be keeping you in and out of the city, though," Shirogane remarked.

        "Yeah. Still need money, which college was also not helping with." Satonaka shook her head, taking another bite of her ice cream. "My boss would probably like me working more hours anyways. I'm gonna finish this semester, and then I'm officially calling it quits." She turned to Akechi. "So how have you been? I would have dropped in earlier, but we don't... want to overwhelm you."

        "I think I've mostly recovered from my injuries and the illness," he replied, fiddling with the spoon in his hands, looking back down at what was left of his ice cream. "We're working through the confession. From what I understand, our relationship is largely dependent on what Shirogane-san decides to do with me after that."

        "Huh. You don't beat around the bush, do you?"

        He glanced up at her, and the curiosity in her gaze, and offered a slightly grim smile. "To be frank, I've done so much of that in the past few years that if I spoke another lie or danced around another subject... I don't know. I just don't want to right now. Might change. Might not."

        "Valid," she replied with a small nod, looking to Shirogane with another grin. "I see why Rise and Yu like this one. Have you taken him out of the house yet?"

        "He hasn't asked," Shirogane replied.

        "I... haven't really been interested, and I'm not feeling up to it today." Akechi turned his gaze back to the ice cream, sticking the spoon in there. "Shirogane said something about having a date with Tatsumi tonight anyways."

        "An actual date, right? Not work?"

        "I am not as much of a workaholic stick-in the-mud as you make me out to be, Chie," Shirogane huffed, a bit of indignation slipping into her tone, and Loki and Robin Hood both perked up while Akechi very pointedly kept his gaze on the ice cream, trying not to smile. "No, I would not call work a date."

        "Look, lady, I wonder sometimes." Satonaka brandished her spoon at Shirogane, but she was still grinning, and Akechi turned his focus to just eating his ice cream and watching. 

        _She and we really are alike in some ways,_  Robin Hood hummed happily as the two women talked back and forth about their plans for the afternoon and Tatsumi.

         _You've really taken a shine to her, haven't you, wonder boy?_  Loki asked, but the edge to his tone was more habit than actual venom.  _You know she only wants the story from us._

         _She has been kind about it, though. And I saw the suspicion fade from Satonaka's gaze throughout our conversation,_  Robin Hood replied. _We all saw it there, she knows and yet is willing to give us a chance. I_ _know you're waiting for the other shoe to drop, just... don't, for the moment. Central has accepted our place and fate here._

 _I have,_  Akechi interjected.  _We've done enough to deserve justice in our own right, enough to deserve death._ Loki actually snarled at that.  _But she knows that too and she still has spared us. I don't know what she wants. But I don't think she is planning to kill us._

_What, then, is she going to do?_

_...We'll find out when we're finished with our confession,_ Akechi replied firmly, and though he knew Loki wasn't satisfied with that answer, he sank back beneath the surface as Akechi finished his ice cream and stood. "Excuse me. I'm a bit more tired than I realized..."

        "Oh, that's totally fine." Satonaka studied him for a moment, and then took a breath. "Hey, do you mind me asking you a question about the Metaverse?"

        "...Depends on what it is," he replied slowly while Shirogane arched an eyebrow.

        "Damage type and main weapon?"

        Akechi blinked. Oh, mechanics. Yes, he could answer this. "Robin Hood specializes in bless and is weak to curse, Loki is really weird, but his attacks are curse, fire, and physical. I use either a lightsaber or a serrated katana."

        Satonaka whistled. "That's an impressive arsenal you have there."

        "I... needed one. What are yours?"

        "Haraedo-no-Okami specializes in ice damage and physical and I use my fists and feet." Satonaka smiled. "All I've ever really needed." 

        Oh. Like Makoto, then... he gave a small nod, glancing at Shirogane before retreating back to his room, back to the solitude he was used to. He felt their eyes on him until he was out of sight, and left to himself to wonder why a question about mechanics had put him so out of sorts. 

        It probably wasn't that. It was probably just him and the conversation between Robin Hood and Loki. It usually was.

        He didn't know what would happen to him after he was finished with his task, but then, he thought grimly as he sat back down on his futon, if today had reminded him of anything it was that he never had known what would come after. 

        He'd take what was handed to him and he would work with it.

-

**April 6th, 2018**

**Akechi:**   Hello?

 **Other End:**   Hello, Akechi-kun. Sorry for missing our date for entrance exam studying.

 **ON:** Oh neato, he turned on speaker. :0

 **Akechi:**   Oh, I missed it too, heh. I'm probably never taking those anyways.

 **Other End:**  Right, same as you thought when we talked about them.

 **ON:** Okay there's silence so... yeah. Depressing.

 **Akechi:** ...Did you know? Did you and Narukami-kun know who I was... what I was doing?

 **Other End:**   Oh, Akechi-kun...  Yes.  We all knew. I think the explanation of how is better left to be said in person and not over the phone while I'm on break, but-

 **Akechi:**  You're using your break to talk to me?

 **ON:** THERE WERE OTHER PEOPLE WHO KNEW? No no no please say it over the phone! D:

 **Other End:**  Of course! I've been so worried. I know we only talked the one time, but I... I hated seeing you in such a state. Naoto and Kanji kept assuring me that you were improving even after Yu and I had to leave, but I still couldn't help but wonder if you were actually going to pull through. Fog sickness is serious.

 **ON:** This is a lot of information all at once, lady. I'm really glad Akechi is silent again, so I can process all this, holy moly. Can I please get more than names and an explanation for a disease I've never heard of? Don't let me down, please.

 **Akechi:**   I'm doing better. Still a bit... out of it, but better.

 **Other End:**  I'm glad to hear. I have to go- do you want to talk to Yu? 

 **Akechi:** Sure.

 **Other End:**  Okay, I'll hand the phone to him then. I'll see you when I get back from tour, alright?

 **Akechi:**  Okay. Bye, Rise-chan.

 **ON:** Rise? Tour? Don't tell me...

 **Akechi:** Hello, Narukami-san.

 **ON:** CRAP, he turned speaker off.

 **Akechi:** About three days. I've still mostly been sleeping. Ri- Kujikawa-san called what I have... fog sickness? Shirogane-san called it that as well.

 **ON:** Where in the heck did he meet  _Risette?_ I have  _several_ questions. 

 **Akechi:**  No, I... I called her Rise-chan. Like she asked me to back in Shibuya.

 **Akechi:**   I, um...  I'm wondering what it is. I've never heard of it before.

 **ON:** Stammering from my Goro Akechi. Why did you turn off speaker, you terrible, terrible teenager? 

 **Akechi:**   So... the exhaustion, and such. I was in the Metaverse for months, so I got a particularly bad case of it.

 **ON** : HOW THE FRICK ARE YOU ALIVE?

 **Akechi:** All of you, huh? I've met... five of you, I think. Though Tatsumi-san hasn't come around yet. Are there others?

 **Akechi:** Do they all know who I am? *shuddering deep breath* I have an idea of why Shirogane-san is being so kind- she wants a confession, after all. But what about the rest of you? Why are you bothering? You have nothing to gain from it and I... I...

 **ON** : Oh boy here we go. 0-0 This is not what I signed up for but... I'll take it?

 **Akechi:**  ...I've killed a lot of people, Narukami-san. I don't deserve the benefit of the doubt. You keep talking like... like I've just made simple mistakes, and I haven't, there are so many people with vacuums in their life because... because- *big pause*  I wasn't ever planning on coming back from this. I thought- I never thought about... about after. And I was in too deep, and I just wanted to finish things and I thought that was worth hurting more people. I don't- I can't- why are you talking to me the same way you were back then? Why ask me anything at all?

 **ON** : O-O

 **Akechi:** You know that huh?

 **ON:** AND HIS VOICE JUST CRACKED

 **Akechi:** You have?

 **Akechi:** Mmhm.

 **Akechi:**  There were three victims, all in one place within a short amount of time. You'd be hard-pressed to find anyone among the police who hasn't heard of it.

 **ON:** And suddenly I need context. You telling a story there, Narukami?

 **Akechi:**  You said you considered killing him.

 **ON:** WHAT

 **Akechi:**  What stopped you?

 **ON:** I feel the need to express that there is a humongous pause here. Narukami is definitely telling a story.

 **Akechi:**  Why are you telling me this?

 **Akechi:**  You would be great friends with the Phantom Thieves, I think.

 **ON:** The Phantom Thieves are looking up one Yu Narukami now for sure there, Akechi, cause they don't know what's going on.

 **Akechi:**  I don't think I would kill someone out of boredom. I never enjoyed it that much.

 **ON:** I AM IN DIRE NEED OF CONTEXT FOR THAT COMMENT.

 **Akechi:** Okay... um... it's not... well. I've enjoyed talking to you again. But I've been up for awhile and this is the longest conversation I've had for...since...

 **Akechi:** Thank you. Good-bye, Narukami-san.

***click***

**-**

**April 10th, 2017, 3:31 PM**

**AJK:**  THAT

 **AJK:**  That is one HELL of a googly doc, Futaba

 **Alibaba:**  I'm sorry to dump it on ya

 **Alibaba:**  But srsly?

 **Alibaba:** I didn't want to just throw that AUDIO FILE

 **Alibaba:**  GOD THAT FILE

 **AJK:** Oh jeez yeah. Are you okay? That hurt to read

 **Alibaba:** sjkdjfeweo I keep forgetting you shot God in the face I can't scream at him anymore

 **Alibaba:**  Goro Akechi is a Grade A JERK just on the grounds that his stupid voice makes me feel things 

 **Alibaba:**  NOT COUNTING LITERALLY EVERYTHING ELSE JUST THAT

 **Alibaba:** But yeah I'm mostly okay

 **AJK:**  Could I maybe have that audio file

 **Alibaba:** Noooooooo

 **Alibaba:** I don't wanna kill you I'll give you the first happy one

 **AJK:** Oracle

 **AJK:**  If he's not DYING

 **AJK:**  It's better than my last memory of his voice

 **Alibaba:** Hhhhhh that's fair, I'll send it

 **Alibaba:** But first

 **Alibaba:**  Info

 **AJK:**  Yeah, is Akechi seriously talking to Risette?

 **Alibaba:**  Yes

 **Alibaba:**  She was easy to find and so was Yu Narukami- he's her bf after all

 **Alibaba:** Who they are and what they do is pretty self-explanatory

 **AJK:** And the other names?

 **Alibaba:**  Naoto Shirogane was harder to find, but not by much.

 **Alibaba:** ESPECIALLY cuz he was one of the few detectives helping you get outta juvie

 **AJK:** WHAT WAIT HOLD ON

 **AJK:** Let me make sure I have everything straight here

 **AJK:** Naoto Shirogane is a detective. He helped me get out of juvie

 **AJK:** He also knew about Akechi's involvement in the murders?

 **Alibaba:** Sure sounds like it

 **AJK:** Inaba is two hours away from Tokyo

 **Alibaba:** Let me cut off any assumptions you're making with some more facts

 **Alibaba:**  I've been digging up a LOT of stuff, and I think I know who this guy is

 **Alibaba:** Well aside from the first person who had Akechi's title

 **Alibaba:** Articles kinda conflict from the Great Akechi Erasure

 **Alibaba:** But from what I've gathered, Shido got him banned from Tokyo.

 **AJK:** Shido got him banned from Tokyo.

 **Alibaba:** Ye

 **Alibaba:**  He knew my mom. 

 **AJK:** Oh.

 **AJK:** Did he go digging?

 **Alibaba:**  Yeeeeep. I think he must've gotten pretty close, close enough that Shido saw him as a big threat.

 **Alibaba:** I actually recognize his face

 **Alibaba:** It's been YEARS, but he used to talk cognitive psience with Mom.

 **Alibaba:**  Like a LOT 

 **AJK:**  ...Shouldn't this person be dead, looking at Shido's track record?

 **Alibaba:** Yeah but he's not

 **Alibaba:** Just kicked outta Tokyo by Shido's connections in the force

 **Alibaba:** If he'd stayed he would've lost his badge

 **Alibaba:** Or yanno, his life

 **AJK:** And somehow, he's found Akechi

 **AJK:** Are Kanji and Tatsumi the same person

 **Alibaba:** Only son of the proprietor of Tatsumi Textiles in Inaba, part-timer there and often Shirogane's companion on police business

 **Alibaba:** He has a bodyguard license. 

 **AJK:**  Okay so

 **AJK:** We have an idol, her boyfriend, a detective, and likely that detective's bodyguard.

 **AJK:** All of them knew about Shido.

 **Alibaba:** All of them except for Yu Narukami are also originally from Inaba.

 **Alibaba:** And he has family there, the Dojimas. Ryutaro Dojima, his uncle, is a detective

 **AJK:**  Holy law enforcement???

 **Alibaba:**  I think Akechi maaayyy have gotten arrested.

 **AJK:**  Probably a safe bet. 

 **AJK:** I'm sorry I'm just REELING.

 **Alibaba:** SAME

 **AJK:** Also wtf is fog sickness

 **Alibaba:**  Yeah no I got nothing that wasn't what Akechi said.

 **Alibaba:**  Just an epidemic that swept through Inaba around the same time as the murders

 **Alibaba:** Really weird murders

 **AJK:**  Murders???

 **AJK:** Like what Akechi was talking about with Narukami?

 **Alibaba:** Yeah he described it. Two people died of unknown causes and were found on telephone poles, the third was a copycat murder.

 **Alibaba:**  Most of Shirogane's fame comes from the fact that he solved that case.

 **Alibaba:** Hold up-

 **AJK:** what

 **Alibaba:** "solved it with the help of his peers, not excluding his usual companion Kanji Tatsumi, and the nephew of Detective Dojima"

 **Alibaba:**  ...There's something fishy about this

 **AJK:**  Yeah

 **AJK:** Keep this around as a pet project?

 **Alibaba:** Roger that, Joker.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 50,000 WORDS AND THE FIRST THIRD OF THE STORY DONE, WOOO!
> 
> Next chapter we'll be getting right back into the in-game events, and that means I need to do a bit of research. That means this story is going on a bit of a hiatus for awhile since there are things in my life I need to sort out as well, but I will return to it for sure. Until then, I'll be rewatching Persona 5 and making some edits to this third of the story.
> 
> Thank you for sticking along for the ride so far! Your comments and enthusiasm definitely add to my excitement when writing this story. :D I'll be sure to keep the current status of the story updated in the chapter summary so you'll know when to expect an update, and I'll see you all in the next chapter.


End file.
